Sweet Thing
by starrysky7
Summary: He was certainly handsome, with a bad boy charm that made all the girls swoon. But he was dangerous, and she knew all about his reputation.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter One**

 _August 1968_

The party was in full swing, the house full of drunk teenagers, Curly among them. Carolyn Hewitt must be regretting inviting their entire grade to her end of summer party, with many of them passed out on her lawn or throwing up in her bushes. Still, he didn't feel sorry for her, not if she got to come home to this mansion every day.

Leaving Jimmy to continue sucking face with Nancy Donovan, he pushed his way through the crowd and out the door. Welcoming the cool breeze, he pulled out a cigarette, shoving it into his mouth and lighting it. The backyard was full of couples huddled in dark corners. Only an hour he'd been among them, until Ricky Stuart decided he didn't much like his ex-girl with Curly, and wanted a fight even more.

Wandering around the side of the house, he found a girl standing there alone, leaning her upper body over the rails of the porch. She hadn't noticed he was there, which gave him a moment to study her. She wasn't a knockout but he supposed she was pretty enough. Tall with long blonde hair. And even if she didn't have that much in her chest area her legs were long, their skin showing from under her skirt. He would have rathered the hemline came higher than just above her knees.

"If you're not careful you'll fall over the edge."

Her eyes shot towards him, fear flicking through them if only for a second, though what exactly she was so afraid of he didn't know. He recognised her face from school, but doubted he'd ever talked to her.

"I'm plenty careful." She replied, setting herself back down on the porch.

"Want a smoke?" He offered, holding the packet out to her, but she shook her head, "Don't smoke?"

"No." She said, "What happened to your hands?"

Curly shrugged. "Got into a fight."

"Isn't this the part where you say you should see the other guy?"

"I would," he said, "But I don't think a nice girl like you should be seeing him."

She simply rolled her eyes, causing him to grin. There wasn't any fear in her eyes anymore, not even as he moved closer. Most girls like her were wary of guys like him, always thinking the worst of them.

"I'm sure there's some ice in the kitchen," she said, to which he raised his eyebrows, "For your hands."

"Nah, they'll be fine." He said, "I've had worse."

"Course you have." She said, and he was sure if she wasn't smiling he'd be offended.

"What's your name?" He asked, resting his elbows down beside hers.

"Peggy Jones."

"Peggy Jones." He repeated, "I'm,"

"I know who you are." She said, but immediately regretted it when his grin only grew and her cheeks reddened.

Yes, she knew who Curly Shepard was, everyone did. He'd gotten into too much trouble both in and out of school to be an unknown.

She'd already spent far too long away from the party, any longer and Jane would send the search party out for her. But being alone was easier than seeing Jane and her boyfriend all over each other and wondering why she and Michael didn't have it that easy.

Things had been great when they first got together. Maybe great was an overstatement, but every interaction wasn't shrouded in awkwardness. Even before they'd started dating, when they were friends, they never struggled to maintain a conversation. But now it felt like everything was an uphill battle with them. One step forward, ten steps back.

"You here with anyone?" He asked, as if he could read her mind.

"Yeah." She said, "Why?"

"Just wondering what a pretty girl like you is doing out here all alone."

"I could ask you the same thing." She retorted, with all the confidence she could muster.

"You think I'm pretty."

 _Yes_ , she thought, _very much_. Though pretty might not be the right word. He was certainly handsome, with a bad boy charm that made all the girls swoon. But he was dangerous, and she knew all about his reputation.

Though, he seemed tame enough to her.

"That's not what I meant." She said, "I swear I saw you sharing spit with a girl not long ago."

"You really do know me."

"I'm observant."

"Are you saying I'm unobservant?"

"Clearly."

"Still haven't answered my question." Curly pointed out. "If you got a date, why aren't you with him?" He asked, smirking at her. "Did he bore ya?"

"My _boyfriend_ is not boring." Peggy retorted. "I just needed a moment to myself."

It wasn't a lie. Michael wasn't by any means boring, and she had genuinely wanted a moment of quiet. Of course, there was more to it then that, but she wasn't about to tell a complete stranger her insecurities about her relationship.

If she was honest, she hadn't even really wanted to come to the party in the first place and have to deal with Michael's attitude. It had been her mother's idea - a chance to have fun and be a teenager. And of course she had to tell Sheila, who just had to tell her son, who got it into his head that it would be the perfect date. Sometimes she really hated dating the son of her mother's friend.

Curly opened his mouth to say something back, no doubt to question her definition of boring, but was interrupted by her name being called. Looking past him, Peggy saw Michael and Jane standing further down on the porch. When Michael's eyes flicked between them, she noticed just how close Curly was standing.

"Nice meeting you, Peggy Jones." Curly smirked at her.

"I'll see you around, Curly Shepard."

Only when she reached the end of the porch did she dare to look back, to see that he was still watching her. But all she could offer him was a small smile, not wanting to wound Michael's pride further. They might be having their troubles but he didn't deserve that. Still, she couldn't help that her mind kept wandering back to Curly Shepard and their brief conversation.

* * *

 **This story takes place in the same universe as my other story 'Ain't No Sunshine'.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Two**

 _August 1968_

Her first day of senior year and Peggy couldn't decide if she wanted to hurry up and get to school or never go at all. This was it. One more year of high school and she'd be off into the big bad world of adulthood, leaving behind the familiar for the unknown. At least she'd be going with Jane so they could face it together.

The kitchen was crowded with her younger siblings when she entered it. Mikey was pouring the milk into the bowls of cereal, Karen and Ruth waiting at the breakfast bar. Peggy grabbed the sandwiches out of the fridge, placing them in bags with her siblings names on it.

"What fruit do you want?" Peggy asked. "Apple or banana?"

The others gave their orders, and Peggy finished their lunches and lined the bags up, grabbing a piece of toast for herself. Her mother rushed into the kitchen, still in her pyjamas, but her dyed blonde hair styled.

"Oh, Peg, you're a life-saver." Her mother muttered, pressing a thankful peck to Peggy's hair. "You know I'm always so unprepared on the first day of school."

"I'm taking Mikey, Karen and Ruth to school," Suzanne continued. "Are you fine to take Vickie with you?"

"I've already got a ride." Vickie said, entering the room.

"Oh, that's good." Suzanne nodded, absentmindedly buttering a piece of toast.

"With who?" Peggy asked.

"A friend." Vickie replied, and Peggy raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, Peggy, I can't believe it's your senior year." Suzanne said. "The years have just flown by. You used be all pigtails and skinned knees."

"Now you've got Ruth for that." Peggy said, affectionately tugging on her sister's pigtails. From outside a car horn sounded. "That's Jane." She announced, "I gotta go."

"Have fun." Suzanne said, passing her backpack over.

The parking lot was surprisingly full for the early morning, especially on the first day. Usually people wanted to delay school for as long as possible. Not everyone shared in her punctuality.

"Was Michael mad about you talking to Curly?" Jane asked, as they got out of the car.

"Why would he be mad?" Peggy asked. "We were just talking."

"Well it looked more like flirting."

"Well it wasn't." Peggy objected.

"If he wasn't flirting with you then why's he looking at you?"

"What!"

Peggy whirled around to find Curly watching her from across the parking lot. Watching might have been an overstatement. He could've glanced at her at the exact same time Jane was looking in his direction. A coincidence, but more likely.

Curly nodded at her, looking away when she smiled back, that smile quickly dying.

"That was nothing." Peggy claimed.

"Whatever you say." Jane scoffed.

Curly hadn't thought of Peggy since the party. After she'd left him at the party Linda had come crawling back, feeling bad about Ricky picking a fight. And he certainly didn't need to think about some girl he'd barely spoken to when he was in bed with a looker like Linda.

Peggy was interesting and all, there was a kick to her that he liked, but he hadn't expected to speak again. She didn't strike him as the type of girl to give it up to a hood like him, and what could he want from her other than sex?

Going back to school wasn't something he'd been looking forward to. There wasn't much of a point to school, but at least it was his final year, he could spend it bumming around with his friends and paying even less attention than he usually did.

"Mr Shepard," a teacher called out. "Principal Miller wants to see you."

"What's that about?" Jimmy asked.

"Who the fuck knows." Curly said. "Just got back and I'm already in trouble."

"What's strange about that?" Jimmy replied.

The Principal's Office was a room Curly was intimately familiar with. He'd gotten into his fair share of trouble at school. Maybe more than that, but he couldn't help it, he was a funny guy and the teachers didn't appreciate his humour.

"Ah, Mr Shepard." Principal Miller greeted. "Please, take a seat."

Curly sat down on the other side of the desk. "Whatever you think I did, I didn't do it."

"I don't think you did anything." Principal Miller said. "That's the problem."

"Huh?"

"Pardon." Principal Miller corrected. "You're here about your poor grades last year."

"Don't think they were any worse than the year before." Curly said.

"The thing is, you'll need to improve your grades this year if you want to graduate." Principal Miller said. "You do want to graduate?"

Curly shrugged in a non-committal manner. Graduating high school wasn't exactly high on his priority list. It wasn't like it'd change anything for him, he wasn't going to college. The only reason he even showed up each day was because Tim would kick his ass if he didn't.

"Well, we've come up with a solution." Principal Miller said. "You'll be tutored."

"Tutored."

"Yes. Every Tuesday you will be tutored by another student." Principal Miller explained. "If you show up each week, and your grades improve, you can graduate at the end of the year provided you pass your exams. Sound fair?"

"Do I have a choice?"

"No." Principal Miller replied. "Tutoring starts next week in the library."

Curly grimaced as he left the office. So much for a year of relaxation. Now he had to spend an hour each week while some loser tried to teach him things he didn't even want to learn.

When next Tuesday afternoon rolled around he had half a mind to blow tutoring off and go do something actually fun. The only reason he hadn't was that Tim had threatened to knock his head in if he didn't go. Besides, how difficult would it be to sit there and ignore someone drone on? It was with this nonchalant confidence that he entered the library, sure that he could handle anything.

"What brings you here Mr Shepard?" The librarian asked with her usual disdain. It wasn't as if Curly frequented the library, but on the odd occasion he actually came he usually caused some kind of trouble.

"To see you, Miss Daughtery." Curly said, grinning at her cheekily.

"Lucky me." Miss Daughtery replied, dryly. "But I'm afraid if that's all you're here for you'll have to leave."

"I'm here for tutoring." Curly admitted. "But mainly to see you."

"I see." Miss Daughtery said, glancing down at her list. "You're with Margaret Jones, over at table four."

"Always a pleasure, Miss Daughtery."

"Hardly." She scoffed, walking off.

Curly was about to make some smart remark when he caught sight of a familiar pretty blonde across the room. He grinned to himself when he realized what number table she was sitting at. Maybe tutoring wouldn't be so bad after all.

Coming up behind her, he leaned down to whisper in her eye. "Margaret Jones."

Peggy damn near jumped out of her seat, looking up at him with wide eyes. "Oh, you're here."

"Were you expecting me?" He asked, taking the seat opposite her.

"They told me I was tutoring you, so yes." She said. "Should I not have expected you?"

Curly shrugged. "So Margaret's your real name?"

"You didn't think it was Peggy." She said. "I don't imagine Curly's your real name."

"It's not."

"What is?"

"Charles."

"Nice name." She told him. "Should we get started?"

"I'd rather not." Curly admitted.

Peggy smiled sympathetically at him. "I don't think you have much of a choice."

"I could always sit here and ignore you." Curly pointed out. "Or we could leave and go somewhere else."

Peggy croses her arms, leaning forward. "But then I wouldn't sign your card to say you actively engaged in the lesson, and then you wouldn't graduate."

"Shit, ain't your harsh." Curly chuckled. "Guess I better listen them."

"I think you should." She agreed. "I think we should start with your worst subject."

"I ain't too crash hot at any of them." He said, leaning back in his chair. "Guess I'm pretty bad at English Lit."

"We'll start there"

The rest of the afternoon went better than Curly expected. Unlike the teachers, Peggy actually managed to hold his attention for the entire time - though her looks may have played a part in that - and for once he actually learned something. The day really was full of surprises.

"I'll see you next week then." Peggy said, as they walked out of the library.

"Course you will." Curly replied. "Wouldn't want to miss out on an hour alone with you."

"And you wouldn't want to not graduate." She reminded him. "It's important that you come to tutoring."

"You're too serious, Peggy.".

"Or maybe you're just not serious enough."

"So we balance each other out." He replied. "Guess that's one of our strengths."

" _We_ don't have any strengths." She said. "Not collectively anyway."

"And here I thought you liked my company." He said. "You were flirting with me at the party."

"I was not."

"You were."

"I was not." She repeated. "In case you don't remember, I have a boyfriend."

"I remember I just don't care."

"Curly," Peggy said sternly. "You can't flirt with your tutor, it's not proper."

"Who wants to be proper?" Curly scoffed.

"Proper people."

"Boring people." Curly replied. "Like your boyfriend."

Peggy shook her head at him. "You're just trying to cause trouble."

"I'm trying to have fun." Curly claimed.

"Why do I think for you the two are the same thing?" Peggy muttered.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Three**

 _September 1968_

Turns out, tutoring isn't too bad when you're tutor's a pretty girl who blushed when you flirted with her. Peggy always acted as if it annoyed her, but she was yet to tell Curly to stop. Flirting with her was fun, and the glares from her boyfriend weren't enough of a reason to stop him. No matter how pissed off Michael looked he never did anything to stop him. Maybe he deserved to watch his girlfriend be flirted with if he just sat back and took it.

If making Michael jealous was his aim then he'd achieved it. He kept glancing smugly in Curly's direction, his arm around Peggy. Curly hadn't planned on going to the bowling alley at the same time as Peggy, especially when she was clearly there on a date, but he also wasn't going to leave because of it. Besides, it wasn't like he was jealous or anything. Peggy was fun to flirt with, but she was more effort than she was worth.

"Ain't that the girl that's tutoring you?" Jimmy asked, jerking his head towards her.

"Yeah." Curly nodded. "Peggy."

"She don't look like your type." Jimmy observed.

"I ain't looking to date her." Curly said. "And whadda ya mean she's not my type?"

"I thought you liked ones with a decent chest." Jimmy said. "That her boyfriend?"

Curly nodded grimly. Peggy leant forward to say something to her friend, not leaning back in to her boyfriends arm.

"You shouldn't get messed up in that shit." Jimmy advised.

"What, you think I can't take him?"

Jimny shook his head. "Tim'll be pissed if you get suspended or arrested for stupid shit like fighting for some chick who ain't even that much of a looker."

"Tim can get fucked." Curly muttered.

Jimmy was getting worried over nothing because Peggy meant nothing to Curly. And as far as Tim went, he didn't really having any business sticking his nose in Curly's love life. But Tim did have a habit of sticking his nose where it wasn't wanted. All things considered, Tim would be an absolute hypocrite if he got pissed about some girl, but bringing Rose into any argument with Tim would never end well.

Maybe it was his annoyance at being told what to do that had him following Peggy to the counter, or maybe it was purely to piss off her boyfriend. It was definitely why he made sure to stand as close as possible without actually touching her.

"Hey, Jones," Curly greeted. "You here with that boring boyfriend of yours?"

"No matter what I say you'll never stop thinking he's boring, will you?" Peggy asked, tilting her head back to look at him.

Peggy was surprised to see Curly there, but she supposed she shouldn't have been, it was a public place after all. She hadn't expected him to come up and talk to her. They may be friendly during tutoring but they weren't friends, and she was sure he was only making polite chit-chat to pass time. Of course, if civility was his purpose his proximity was rather improper.

"No." Curly admitted. "Cause he is."

"Whatever you say." Peggy playfully rolled her eyes. "What're you doing here?"

"Bowling."

"Do you often bowl by yourself?" She asked. "Are you so terrible that you have to play alone to win?"

"I'm a great bowler."

"Alright, I'll take your word for it." Peggy said, stepping up to the counter to give her order to the server before turning back to him. "I guess I'll see you on Tuesday then."

"Guess you will." Curly said, following her as she left the counter.

"You're not going to order anything?"

"Not hungry." He told her, grinning as he backed away.

Peggy raised her eyebrows at him in astonishment, before shaking her head. It wasn't that hard to figure out his motivations. He was having a bit of fun, that's all. She was beginning to learn that that was a bit of a priority for Curly. She tried to ignore Michael's questioning gaze when she sat back down next to him, hoping that if she acted like everything was fine he'd let it go. It wasn't a crime to talk to Curly.

"Why were you talking to Curly Shepard?" Michael asked.

"Because we know each other." Peggy replied. "Would've been rude to ignore him."

"You know I don't like you talking to him." Michael said, and Peggy had to physically stop herself from rolling her eyes. "He flirts with you."

"Well I don't flirt back, now do I?"

"You don't stop him either." Michael pointed out. "You shouldn't be involved with him. He's dangerous, a real hood."

"Please come up with a better argument." Peggy said. "Because I doubt I'll be inducted into a gang merely by talking to Curly."

"I want you to stop tutoring him." Michael demanded.

"I'm his assigned tutor, I can't request a switch without a good reason." Peggy said. "And your insecurity is not a good reason."

Turning her back on him, she put a stop to any further interrogation. Knowing that Michael was overreacting only aggravated her more. In the three months that they'd been dating he'd never made such a request. There was some slight jealousy here and there - always unprovoked - but this was something new, and she doubted it was brought on by a sudden depth to his feelings for her.

Michael ignored her in turn, moving to sit sullenly beside Jane's date. Peggy felt guilty about ruining the double date, since Michael would spend the rest of it sulking, he did so enjoy stewing over things. This was the second double date that had ended in an argument. Maybe they just didn't do well when around other couples.

"You two okay?" Jane asked.

"He's just annoyed that I'm beating him." Peggy replied.

"As if you wouldn't be annoyed if he was winning." Jane said. "You're both too competitive."

It was a valid point, she had to admit. Maybe that was their problem, they were too similar in only bad ways.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Four**

 _September 1968_

Tutoring Curly was progressing at a surprising rate. He wasn't as book dumb as he seemed, and part of his problem was a distinct lack of motivation. All Peggy had to was find the right way to get him to stop and do the work.

Not that tutoring wasn't causing her an endless amount of headaches. One being from Jane's pondering expressions, which, by lunchtime, Peggy was well and truly sick of.

"Why don't you just say whatever it is that you want to say?"

"Are you still going to tutor Curly?" Jane asked, hurriedly, as if releasing a breath she'd been holding in for quite some time.

"Why wouldn't I?" Peggy asked. "I signed up to tutor and I can't back out now."

"Okay, but is it really worth it?" Jane asked. "Is letting Curly flirt with you worth pushing Michael away?"

She didn't have an answer to that, and it rankled her. There had never been an excess of reasons for dating Michael, but that list was quickly dwindling and soon enough the cons would far outweigh the benefits.

"Okay, but if you're going to break up with Michael, don't use Curly to do it." Jane said.

"I was never planning to." Peggy admitted. "I'm not interested in Curly."

"Good."

"Why's that good?" Peggy asked. "Hypothetically speaking, of course, but why would me liking Curly be such a travesty."

"Because, he's not exactly boyfriend material." Jane said. "And it's not because of where he comes from, I just don't think he'd make a good boyfriend. And you'll be going off to college next year, so what's the point of getting a new boyfriend you'll only have to break up with?"

It was an entirely valid argument. Curly didn't keep girls around for very long, he was definitely involved in shady stuff, and she wasn't going to be in Tulsa for much longer. None of that made for an appealing prospectful suitor.

"Well, it's a good thing I don't like him."

Jane's advice hung over her head as they began their tutoring session, and was the reason she was attempting to keep things professional. It wasn't easy to keep Curly on task, but she'd been managing it pretty well so far. Though, she suspected her letting him flirt with her had played a part in his lack of resistance.

"D'we really have to do this?" Curly asked, half-heartedly.

"Unfortunately, yes." She replied, sympathetically. "I know these session must be torture for you."

"Beats the rest of school." He scoffed.

"You really don't like anything about school?" She asked.

"Lunch." Curly suggested. "Don't mind auto."

"You like fixing cars?" She asked and he nodded. "Any good?"

"Have to be, can't afford to get it fixed."

"That's a skill." Peggy pointed out.

"Being poor?"

"No." She replied. "Being able to work with your hands."

"Oh, I can do plenty of work with my hands." Curly said, winking suggestively.

"Very funny." She said. "My dad's like that. He likes to build things."

"What's he build?"

"Houses, for a living, but other things too. He always likes to have a project." She said. "He builds things for me and siblings. My brother likes birds so Dad built him a bird bath."

Curly nodded along as she spoke, leaning closer. His interest was probably only a way to avoid work, but sometimes buttering people up helped get them to work.

"Did your father ever build you anything?"

Curly snorted. "My father never gave me shit."

"Oh." She said. "Sorry."

"It don't matter." He shrugged nonchalantly.

That was doubtful. Children of unloving parents don't walk away from childhood unscathed. Hell, even loving parents can mess their children up.

"Why don't we get started?" She suggested, and Curly acquiesced.

Despite starting on a bad note their session wasn't a complete failure. Maybe he wanted to avoid any more personal talk, but Curly actually listened more than he usually did when she was explaining the problem to him.

Curly flexed his free hand, as he wrote down an equation with the other. From his busted and bruised knuckles he'd obviously been in a fight, not that day but nof long ago. It was hardly surprising, Curly was always getting into fights. Fighting didn't make any sense to Peggy. Punching someone didn't solve anything, and only made you feel better for awhile.

"What happened to your hands?" Peggy asked.

"Got into a fight." Curly said.

"Why?" She asked, and Curly gave her the most befuddled expression, as if it had never occurred to him that he needed a reason to fight someone.

Curly shrugged. "Nothing really."

"If it was nothing than why would you hit someone?"

"Why'd you think I hit first?" Curly asked, gruffly. "Maybe I was defending myself."

Now it was Peggy's turn to shrug. "I just assumed it was you."

"Course you did." Curly muttered, bitterly.

Curly glowered at the desk, his expression harder and colder then she'd ever seen it. At least, more than she'd ever seen it directed at her. It was difficult to avoid Curly's reputation unless she'd been living under a rock. But knowing and seeing were two different things, and she'd only ever seen the jovial Curly. Not the Curly who flouted the law and kept getting himself thrown in jail, one day for good. That side of him was a stranger to her, and he wasn't a man she had any interest in meeting.

"I've just heard stuff about you, and I guess I jumped to a conclusion." She said. "I'm sorry if I offended you. I shouldn't be making assumptions about you considering we don't even know each other."

"No, we don't." Curly agreed, still looking annoyed but somewhat placated. "Saw you arguing with your boyfriend on Saturday. What was that about?"

"You." She said, causing Curly to tilt his head forward, leaning closer. "Michael was being stupid, that's all. Though you might do me a favour and stop flirting with me since we both know you aren't serious."

"Well, see I don't think you want me to stop." Curly suggested, grinning at her cheekily.

"I do want you to." She affirmed.

"I don't think you do. But if that's what you say, I'll stop." He said, sounding as if it were a great sacrifice. "What're you even with him for? He's such an ass."

Discussing such a personal topic with a virtual stranger was normally out of the question for Peggy. Only friends and family could be trusted with the inner workings of her mind. But they weren't people she could be honest with in this particular situation, and she needed to bounce her ideas of off someone. Even if only to get an objective third party's opinion. Not that Curly was in any way objective.

"Our Moms are friends, we've known each other our whole lives. Everyone always used to talk about us being together one day, and I suppose we felt we owed it to our families to try. At least I did." Peggy explained. "He's not a bad guy. But, I think he can feel it slipping away so he's trying to hold on, and that's making it worse."

"Dump him then." Curly suggested, and Peggy almost let out an exasperated laugh - as if her problem had such an easy solution.

"It's not that simple."

"Why not?"

"Because our families are friends, and I can't just destroy the relationship like that." Peggy said. "And us being together makes my mom so happy."

"Who cares what your mother feels." Curly said.

"I care." Peggy replied, letting out a sigh. "It's like, the rest of my life is all planned out, and Michael just always factored into that. Like it was a given that after college we'd get married, buy a house at the end of a cul-de-sac, have a couple kids and live out that life that everyone else has."

"That what you want?" Curly asked.

It was a simple question with no easy answer, not matter how badly she wanted there to be one.

"I'm not sure. I've never really thought that much about that side of things. I know I want to go to college and become a teacher, a good teacher I hope, but everything else, I don't know." She admitted. "What about you? You got any plans?"

"Nope." Curly replied. "No fun in planning things."

"You and I are two very different people." Peggy chuckled. "I could never live life flying by the seat of my pants."

"Yeah," Curly nodded. "Bet you've never broken a rule in your life."

"What's wrong with rules?" She asked, indignantly.

"Everything."

"I'll add that to the list of our differences." She remarked.

"Already got a list written up?" He asked.

"I'm organised." She said. "It's my job."

"Where do you work?"

"At the library."

"The library." Curly repeated.

"Yes." She said, indignantly.

It wasn't like she admitted to working in a morgue or something morbid. The library was hardly a place of ill repute

"How'd you get that job?" He asked. "Spend so much time there they figured they oughta make it official?"

"No, I, I reorganised their shelves."

"What?"

"The previous girl who worked there kept doing it wrong, and I kept fixing it up." She explained. "When they found out they thought they might as well give me the job."

It never sounded good when said aloud, but it was hardly her fault she was better at someone else's job. And turning down employment was rather illogical.

Curly chuckled. "You just keep getting better and better."

Anyone else and she would've assumed they were making fun of her, but Curly seemed genuinely amused. Not in the, I think you're weird kind of way, but in the I find you endearing. It was nice to get that reaction.

"Thank you." She replied, uncertainly. "We should probably get back to work."

"Why? Time's up." Curly said, jerking his head to the clock.

"So you were stalling me." She said in mock outrage. "Trying to take up our time with chat."

"You're the one that started it." He pointed out, rising from his chair and she did the same.

"Well, that's, besides the point." Peggy replied, following him out of the library.

"So," Curly said, raising his eyebrows at her. "What have you heard about me?"

Of course he couldn't just let that part go. She'd thought she'd gotten away with her insinuations, but apparently not.

"That you're a no good troublemaker, the likes of which well-bred girls like me should steer clear of." She answered. "And are you?"

"You betcha."


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Five**

 _September 1968_

The library was unusually full for late on a Friday afternoon. Usually this was when business tapered off, only to be picked up the next day. Peggy preferred the busy times, where there was always something to do, as opposed to sitting around twindling her thumbs until her shift ended. At least the shelves always needed reshelving. It was a repetitive task, but there was something satisfying in ordering chaos.

Placing the last book on the shelf, Peggy glanced triumphantly down at the now empty cart. It was a small victory, but it still counted. She pushed the cart out of the aisle, returning it the front office and doing a lap of the library. In one of the corners of the reading section she found a boy with his nose buried in a book, as it usually was. He was small for his age, and if she hadn't known him she would've thought him younger then he was.

"Bobby Brown, do you ever go home?" Peggy asked.

He looked up at her with a sheepish expression. "The books here are just too good."

"If you wait any longer it'll be dark and you won't be able to catch the bus home." She warned.

"Last chapter, I promise."

"Alright." She conceded. "I'll be back in twenty."

Sure enough, he was still sitting there twenty minutes later, no more likely to leave then he had been before. Kicking eager children out of the library was not something she ever wanted to do, but if Bobby wasn't encouraged to leave he'd be there until closing. Which wouldn't have been a bad thing if he had parents that cared enough to pick him up, but he wasn't that fortunate.

With some prodding, Bobby reluctantly skipped off, promising to return at opening the next day. She might've laughed it off if he hadn't repeatedly showed up before the library opened on a Saturday.

Dorothy had let her off early so she could go to her grandparents for dinner, but that left her little time to get ready. Vickie was as eager to visit their grandparents as ever, but at least she didn't need to be bugged to get dressed.

"I still don't see why we have to go." Vickie said, trudging towards the car.

"Because they're our grandparents and it's nice to go and see them."

"Easy for you to say," Vickie said, joining Peggy in the car. "You're the golden child who can do no wrong."

"Am not." She replied, but Vickie scoffed in response. "I'm not."

"Whatever you say."

An argument wasn't the best way to start off the night. Vickie sulked the whole drive and Peggy ignored her in turn. There wasn't any truth to what she said anyway. Their grandparents didn't play favourites, no more than anyone did. But, then again, there had to be a reason Vickie believed it, even if it was only misinterpretation.

They arrived at the house right at seven o'clock, any later and their grandfather was apt to send out a search party. He knew how punctual Peggy was, it was a trait they shared. By the time they reached the door Vickie had gotten over her mood, smiling sweetly when the maid opened the door and invited them in.

"Oh, good, you're here." Their grandfather greeted, walking in to the foyer. "Dinner's just been served."

Stanley Beaumont was a tall man, he'd been fit in his youth but had filled out with age. His grey hair has been blonde once, though she couldn't remember it, and like the rest of him it was neat and orderly. Their grandmother was waiting for them in the dining room, hugging her and Vickie when they entered. She was shorter than her husband, and looked practically petite when standing beside him. She was dressed in a blue tailored skirt and white top, her greying brown piled in a perfect bun.

"How have you two been?" Minnie asked, gesturing for them to sit.

"Good." Peggy replied.

"Fine." Vickie said at the same time.

"School's good?" Minnie asked, and they nodded. "Peggy, how's tutoring going?"

"It's good." She said. "We've only just started, but so far so good."

"Who're you tutoring?" Stanley asked, as the maid served the plates of food. "Anyone we would know?"

"Not unless you spend a lot of time at the police station." Vickie whispered, but if their grandparents heard they made no comment.

"Curly Shepard." Peggy answered.

"Shepard." Stanley mused. "Never heard of a Shepard."

"Curly...that must be a nickname." Minnie said. "Or, at least I hope it is. Can't imagine many people would name their child that"

"It is."

"Because of his hair?"

"I've never asked." Peggy admitted. "But I would assume so, he does have very curly hair."

"It's good that you're doing this, it'll make you look good to colleges." Stanley said. "You should think about that, Vickie, what extra curriculars are you currently doing?"

"None, at the moment." Vickie admitted, staring intently at one of the peas on her plate as she crushed it with her fork.

"Don't play with your food." Minnie admonished. Vickie huffed, but put the fork down.

"You know, Vickie's doing AP Chemistry this year." Peggy piped up. "She was top of her class last year."

"Science, really." Minnie said, leaning forward. "Time's really have changed. In my day no women would dare have studied science for fear of scaring away a man."

"Why's that?" Vickie asked. "Since so many scientists are men, wouldn't it help you find a husband."

"Well, people don't like to be showed up, especially not in something they consider themselves an expert in." Minnie explained.

She meant men didn't like to be showed up by women, but that was too of an indelicate statement. Times may have changed, but the more things change the more they stay the same. Michael was the perfect example of that. He wanted to compete with her in everything, had since they were children, and didn't enjoy it when she won. Losing wasn't something she enjoyed either, but there was a particular malevolence to his reactions that she'd never understood. Curly never reacted to her intelligence like that, he rather seemed to enjoy it.

"Science, that's a solid field." Stanley commented. "Do you know what area you want to go into?"

"I haven't really thought about it."

"You should." He said. "It's never too early to start planning, and a girl with your intelligence shouldn't waste it. Look at Peggy, she's known what she wants to do for years, though, I disagree with her choice of college."

"Oklahoma State is a perfectly respectable institution." She pointed out.

"Yes, but with your grades you could easily get into a college on the East Coast." Stanley argued. "Bryn Mawr, Barnard, Stanford in California."

"And I'll be sending an application to those colleges and more."

This wasn't a new discussion for them. For the past year her grandfather had been trying to convince her to go to a prestigious school on the East Coast instead of the one that was only an hour away. She would've thought he'd prefer having her close rather than across the country.

"Good." Stanley said, as if the matter was closed. "It's good to keep your options open."

"Maybe you could help your sister come up with a plan." Minnie suggested, smiling sweetly. "Oh, Peggy, we're having a charity fundraiser on Sunday and I was wondering if you'd want to come, you're always so helpful. You're perfectly welcome too, Vickie."

"Sorry, grandma, but I already have plans." Vickie said, though Peggy doubted the accuracy of the statement.

"Oh, that's a shame, but you'll still come, won't you Peggy?"

"Of course." She said. "I'll be there."

The rest of dinner was spent with her grandmother telling them all about the fundraiser, where it was, what it was for, who was going to be there. Stanley made polite interjections whenever someone he knew was brought up, usually commenting on their family or profession. Vickie smiled and nodded, but when it came time to leave she practically ran out of there.

"You're such a suck up." Vickie said, as Peggy started the car.

"Am not."

"You really want to go to her stupid charity fundraisers?" Vickie asked. "Sit with all of her snobby friends while they try to ease their guilt about being loaded."

"Well, I like to go, I like to help her out." Peggy said. "Do you really have plans?"

"No."

"Didn't think so."


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Six**

 _September 1968_

The annual Tulsa State Fair was a bit of a family tradition for Peggy and this was the first time she wouldn't be going with them. Instead Michael had somehow convinced her to come with him and his friends. And by convinced, he told his mom who told her mom who then essentially made her go - what a great boyfriend.

Peggy was glad that at least Michael's friends had brought their girlfriends with them. She wasn't exactly close friends with any of them but they ran in the same circles enough that they weren't strangers. Beside, it was preferable to her tagging along with the boy's club.

After the string of rides she was almost convinced she was having fun. Peggy had always loved carnival rides, and by constantly doing something she could avoid how awkward things were between her and Michael.

"I'm gonna get some cotton candy." Tommy announced, slinging his arm across his girlfriends shoulder to press her against him. "Anyone else want some?"

As the group answered, each of the couples took the opportunity of free hands to practically attach themselves to each other. Except for them, of course. Michael looked at her as if he wanted to take her hand, but then took her lack of response as a message of discouragement. He'd always needed encouragement to make any kind of move, whether it was from her or his mother.

"You gonna have some, Michael?" Robbie asked.

"Nah, I don't like cotton candy." Michael replied, turning to her. "Remember the time I ate too much cotton candy then went on the roller coaster and threw up?"

"How could I forget." Peggy replied. "You threw up on me."

"Yeah, I did." He said. "But you threw up on me in a car when we were eight, so I think we're even."

"I guess so."

Then there were times like that where things almost seemed normal. Not normal in the boyfriend-girlfriend sense, but normal between then. Like how it was when they were just friends. Sometimes she wished they could go back to that.

While they waited for the others to get their cotton candy she took the opportunity to scan the crowd. It was mainly full of families or teenagers on dates, nothing unusual, until one teenager caught her eye in particular. Standing by the hot dog stand was her sister, with the arm of some unknown boy around her shoulders.

Vickie was oblivious to her, too wrapped up in her date, giving Peggy that chance to assess the situation. And she wasn't impressed in the slightest. Not only had Vickie not told her family about her date, but Peggy didn't like the look of the boy either. She guessed he was attractive in a bad boy sort of way, what with the leather jacket and rough demeanour. But he looked mean. Like the type that had only known unkindness and it had turned him hard and angry. She supposed some would have said that about Curly too.

"Why you staring at that guy?" Michael asked, frowning at her.

"He's with Vickie."

"So?"

"So, I don't know who he is and he's with my sister."

"It's not like Vickie knows everyone you talk to." Michael pointed out. "It's probably nothing."

"It's not nothing." Peggy said. "They looked very cozy and I want to know who's cozying up to my sister, is that so bad?"

"Whatever."

She knew he thought she was overreacting, he usually did, but she disagreed. Ever since Anna had left for college Peggy had been the oldest sibling, and it was a role she took very seriously. If her little sister was hanging around with nefarious types she wanted to know and she wanted to put a stop to it.

"Why don't we go on the Ferris Wheel?" Nicole suggested from underneath Tommy's arm.

"Oh, no." Peggy objected. "I think I'll have to back out of this one."

"Really?" Michael whined.

"You know I'm deathly afraid of heights." She said. "When have I ever gone on a Ferris Wheel?"

"Michael will look after you." Tommy said, winking at his friend.

"Yeah, Peg." Michael said. "C'mon, just go on it."

"No!"

"You never wanna do anything." Michael said.

"No, I just don't want to do things that I'm afraid of and won't enjoy." Peggy said. "I don't make you go on the teacups because of that one time you threw up afterwards, and now I'm starting to think you may have digestive problems."

"I don't have digestive problems!"

"Then why can't you keep food in your stomach."

"Hey, guys its fine." Nicole interrupted. "My sister's just over there, she can go on the Ferris Wheel with Michael so he won't be alone."

"Sounds good to me." Michael said, bitterly.

"Me too." Peggy said, with equal bitterness.

As the group walked towards the line for the Ferris Wheel Michael glanced back at her with an almost apologetic look, but she didn't return it. Even if she felt bad she wouldn't have let him see, since that would mean admitting she did something wrong when she hadn't.

Of course, she did feel kind of stupid lingering in the walkway by herself. She supposed she could go and find her family, but then she'd have to face her mother's prying questions. She'd rather deal with Michael's attitude than her mother's disappointment.

"Hey, Jones." A voice called out, and she turned around to see Curly strolling up to her.

"Hey, Shepard." She replied. "You been studying?"

"Course I have." He said, with every ounce of confidence despite it being a blatant lie. "Who you here with?"

"I came with Michael."

"Came with?"

"Yeah, we kinda had a fight."

"What'd you fight about?" Curly asked.

"It was something stupid, it's always something stupid with us." Peggy said. "We were always bickering before we got together, and I s'pose for other couples that makes for sexual tension or something, but I think it's just making us hate each other."

"You gonna dump him yet?"

"You make everything sound so simple." Peggy said. "Anyway, who'd you come with?"

"Just some buddies of mine." Curly shrugged.

"They off raising hell?"

"Probably."

"And you're here with me?"

"And I'm here with you." He said. "C'mon."

Jerking his head towards the stalls, he started walking off. Peggy knew that staying and waiting for Michael was the right thing to do. They'd might've been fighting but he hardly deserved her running off with someone else. Not that he'd ever have to know. She could be back before he ever got off the Ferris Wheel and he'd be none the wiser.

"Where are we going?" She asked, falling into step with him.

"To have fun o'course."

"What? By playing these games?" She asked. "You know they're rigged right?"

"Maybe you're just bad at them."

"They're rigged to get men to waste all their money winning their girlfriend a cheap toy." She said. "And I'm not bad at them."

"Prove it." Curly challenged, grabbing onto her elbow and steering her towards the nearest stall, with balloons attached to a wall ready to be popped.

As much as she would've liked to say she refused to be drawn into his game, she never could resist a challenge, she was too damn competitive.

"Fine." She said, stepping up to the counter, handing over her money in exchange for a handful of darts.

"You ever played darts before?" Curly asked when she rejoined him.

"Once or twice."

"Want me to show you how it's done?"

"Don't think I'm gonna let you put your arms around and feel me up under the guise of demonstrating how it's done." Peggy said, pointing an accusing finger at him.

"Why you always gotta think the worst of me?" Curly asked, smirking at her. "I ain't gonna touch ya unless you want me to."

"Oh." She muttered. "Sorry."

"Don't worry." He said. "Maybe I'll teach you how to play pool next."

"I know how to play pool."

Her first few throws went awry, and she could practically feel Curly's glee at his perceived win. She scrunched up her nose, then tried to smile when she realised what she was doing.

"What was that?" Curly asked.

"Nothing." She replied. "Alright, I was trying to keep my competitive face under control."

"Why?"

"Well, it's not very attractive."

"I thought we were just friends?"

"We are." She agreed. "Still, it's not very ladylike."

"Ain't nothing good about being a lady." Curly said. "Makes you stiff and stupid."

"My grandmother would disagree with you." Peggy said. "Though, she'd think not letting a man win at everything to be awfully uncouth of me. Not at all how one finds a husband."

"Thank god you ain't looking for one of those."

"Thank god."

The chuckle all but died in her mouth when out of the corner of her eye she saw her sister's date standing in front of the booth across from them. There was still something suspicious about him. Maybe she was just being prejudiced because of his appearance and completely overreacting. But she wasn't going to take that chance.

"Hey, do you know who that is?" Peggy asked, gesturing towards him in her most inconspicuous way.

"Yeah. Not sure 'bout his name but he's part of the Brumly gang." Curly said. "Why?"

"I saw him with my sister earlier." She said. "Should I be concerned?"

Curly shrugged. "Maybe."

Turns out knowing doesn't always make things better, since now she knew she had a reason to be concerned. Still, there was nothing she could do about it at a fair. Vickie would do what she wanted, and Peggy would have to resign herself to the role of damage control.

Peggy wasn't sure if by losing at the game she actually won by proving her point, but that was the way she chose to look at it.

"Such a shame that I don't get a stuffed toy." She said. "However will I go on now?"

"Don't jump the gun." He said, checking over his shoulder to make sure they were a sufficient distance away from the stall before pulling a small stuffed elephant out of his pocket.

"You stole that, Curly." She admonished. "You know you're cutting in to that man's livelihood."

"What if he's rich and don't need the money?"

"That's besides the point." She said. "Deserving to be a victim of a crime is a subjective standard, and a society couldn't operate on such a fallible concept."

Curly frowned at her, quizzically. "I think you're being dramatic."

"I don't think so." She replied. "And anyway, what if you get caught?"

"I will if you say it any louder." He grumbled. "Just take it, and don't say nothing."

If it wasn't a gift she wouldn't have taken it, but rejecting it now would look ungrateful.

"Yeah, I s'pose stealing a stuffed animal for your tutor would really ruin you reputation." She teased, raising her eyebrows at him. "So, what am I meant to do with it. Sleep with it every night and think of you? That's not at all inappropriate."

"Ain't nothing about me's appropriate." Curly said, winking at her.

"That doesn't really quite make sense and yet somehow it does."

Curly opened his mouth to reply but before he could they were interrupted by Michael calling out her name. The two boys glared at each other, and for a moment Peggy thought she'd be in the middle of an all out brawl. So much for keeping him in the dark for his own benefit.

Thankfully, Curly simply brushed past her, leaning to whisper in her ear, "See you on Tuesday, Jones."

Michael hands were tightly clutched into fists, glaring at Curly, probably cursing him ten times over in his mind. She readied herself for yet another argument, but when Michael turned to her he looked more annoyed than furious.

"Curly win that for you?" Michael asked, pointing to the stuffed animal.

"No." She said, inwardly grimacing. It might not have been an outright lie but it wasn't the truth either.

"The rest of us are going back to Tommy's, you coming?"

"I think I just want to go home." She said. "I'm tired."

"Figures."

"What does that mean?"

"Nothing."

Any other time and she would've demanded a proper explanation, but they'd had enough fights for one night. There would always be time for more.


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Seven**

 _October 1968_

Even though summer was well and truly over, the nights growing colder ever day, the movie theatre was still packed that Friday night. Peggy supposed that more people were choosing to watch their movies in the comfort of indoors rather than brace the cold at the drive in. Unless of course they were planning on generating their own source of warmth.

The line at the ticket counter was long enough that they might've been late for the movie had Jane not insisted they get there early. As usual, Lori was late and arrived just as they reached the counter.

"Sorry guys." She said. "I promise I have a good excuse this time."

"No you don't." Jane said, shaking her head.

"No I don't." Lori agreed. "At least I got here before the movie started."

"That's an admittedly low bar." Peggy pointed out.

"She's here, that's all that matters." Jennifer said with finality, turning to Peggy. "How'd Michael take it when you blew him off to come to the movies with us?"

He hadn't been thrilled when she told him but she hadn't exactly given him much of a choice. What did he expect her to do, invite him along to hang with her friends?

"I didn't blow Michael off, we already had plans." She corrected. "Besides, I don't know how much longer Michael's going to be my boyfriend."

Peggy knew she shouldn't be so casual about ending her relationship, but if she were honest with herself it had never felt like much of a relationship in the first place. Of course, then their break-up would feel rather clinical in nature, as if they were ending a business arrangement. And if she engineered it correctly they could get through it with the minimal amount of damage to their respective families.

"You're dumping him?" Lori asked. "Why?"

"Because we're not working out." Peggy said. "I just have to figure out how to do it."

"What, you gonna plan the perfect break-up?" Jennifer asked. "Because it doesn't exist."

"Maybe not," She conceded. "But at least this way I can minimise the hurt."

"It'll hurt him no matter what." Jane pointed out.

"Does this have something to do with Curly Shepard?" Lori asked.

"No!"

"Why not?"

"Because it doesn't."

"But he's hot." Lori said. "And you know you think so too."

That was one thing she couldn't argue against. Curly Shepard was attractive, in a roguish sort of way, but attractive nonetheless, and she'd definitely noticed.

"Fine." Peggy said. "He's physically appealing, but that doesn't mean I like him or want to date him. And I'm really sick of the insinuations."

"Whatever you say." Lori replied. "But if you don't want him, mind putting in a good word for me."

The thought of Curly and Lori was strange to her. The two of them didn't fit, they weren't compatible. And if they did date and things went badly, that would put Peggy in a precarious position to say the least.

"I really don't see what the appeal is." Jennifer said. "I mean, it's not like you could actually have a future with him or anything."

"He's not that bad." Peggy said. "He's not bad at all really."

"Besides, maybe I just want to have fun." Lori said. "Not every relationship has to be about finding your future husband."

"I just don't see the point in a relationship if it's not going anywhere."

"Way to put a damper on things." Lori said.

"Let's just go watch the movie." Jane said. "We can judge each other's taste in guys later."

As they walked towards the entrance to the theatre, Lori dropped into step with Peggy and linked their arms together. "So, will you put in a word for me with Curly?"

"I guess." Peggy shrugged. "We're really not that close, I don't think it'll do much good."

"Better than nothing."

Peggy was glad that Jane had insisted on punctuality, otherwise they may not have found four seats together. As it was, they had to settle for the row behind the couples seat, which was occupied by a pair who wasted no time in swapping copious amount of spit.

"Do they have no decency?" Jennifer whispered. "We're in public."

"At least they're just kissing." Jane said.

"For now." Lori said. "Watch this."

Picking up one of the popcorn kernels, Lori threw it through the air, landing itself in the unsuspecting girls hair. When the girl failed to realise, a now giggling Lori threw another kernel, then another.

"Stop it." Jane scolded. "You'll get us in trouble."

"She hasn't even noticed." Lori replied. "I'll stop when she notices."

But when she picked up another kernel Jane leant over and flicked it from her hand. Unfortunately, her intervention failed to achieve its goal, the kernel flying straight into the back of the head of the boy in front. Even more unfortunate was the fact that he noticed.

The others immediately attempted to act natural, which of course wasn't as inconspicuous as intended. Peggy would have joined in, had she not frozen stiff when he turned around only to reveal that it was Curly she'd been watching suck face. His eyes went straight to her, but instead of anger or even annoyance, he looked almost amused.

If Peggy could've sunk any further into her chair she would have. It would've been bad enough if it was a stranger, but the fact that it was Curly made her want to disappear into a puff of smoke. There was no way he'd let her live this one down.

Curly grinned broadly at her, giving her a small wave before wrapping his arm around the girl beside him. Beside her, Lori was looking rather chuffed with herself, and Peggy wondered if she'd known all along who has sitting in front of them. She could've kicked herself for not realising sooner, but it was dark, and she hardly had the back of his head memorised.

For the rest of the movie Peggy kept her eyes glued firmly on the screen. Curly had glanced back a few times but she had refused to look at him, and when the credits started to roll she bolted out of there.

"That was hilarious." Lori said, as they walked through the exit. "You should've seen your face."

"Easy for you to say." Peggy retorted. "You're not the one that has to face at school. It's gonna be awful."

"I thought you said he wasn't that bad?" Jennifer asked.

"He isn't, but that doesn't mean he won't tease me mercilessly for this."

"Why do you even care?" Jennifer asked. "I thought you were barely even friends."

"We are."

"Then why do you care?"

"Because I don't like to be embarrassed, okay." Peggy said. "Is that so bad?"

"No, I guess not." Jennifer replied. "Sorry, I didn't mean to upset you."

"It's okay." She said. "So I'll see you guys on Monday."

They each exchanged hugs before going their separate ways. It was irrational to be getting worked up over something so little, but Jennifer's needling had been so irksome. Bring publically embarrassed only made it worse. Not that Curly would probably remember by their next tutoring session, surely his date was a sufficient distraction. She hoped.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **NOTE: I have gone back and revised my chapters, adding in additional material, and chapter five is new.**

* * *

 **Chapter Eight**

 _October 1968_

Of course, the universe would never be that kind to her.

"Did you have a good weekend?" Curly asked, plopping down into the seat opposite her.

"Pretty average." She said. "You?"

"Pretty average."

"I pity your date then."

"Oh, no," Curly said, leaning back in his chair. "She wasn't average."

"Ew, too much information." Peggy objected, cringing at the thought. "Sorry about Lori, she thought she was being funny."

"It's okay." He said. "She wasn't that good of a date anyway."

"Not much titillating conversation from her then?"

"Titillating?"

"It means interested, get your mind out of the gutter." Peggy told him. "Actually, it does have sexual connotations, I meant scintillating but that doesn't matter."

"God, Jones, we're at school." Curly said with mock disapproval. "Who knew you were so filthy minded?"

"Let's get started, shall we." Peggy announced, putting an end to any discussions that even lingered in the area of innappropriate.

The tutoring session was perhaps less successful than their others. Maths had never been her strongest subject, and it was hard enough getting Curly to pay attention for a full hour when it was a subject she actually liked. At least he was trying more now. He still took any chance to joke around and waste time, but when she asked him to do something he was putting up less of a fight.

After they finished she followed him out of the library and into the almost empty parking lot. She scanned the remaining cars, and was surprised when she didn't see his.

"You didn't drive today?"

"Nah, Tim needed my car for something." Curly said. "I'm walking home today. You?"

"Bus." She said, pointing in the direction of the bus stop. "Which way you heading?"

"That way." He replied, pointing in the same direction. "Guess you gotta put up with me a bit longer."

"Guess so." She said. "Isn't it kinda far to walk to your house? Though, I guess I wouldn't know since I don't actually know where you live."

"I used to walk home all the time 'fore I got my car." He said. "It's not a bad. Don't get jumped as often as I used to."

"You got jumped?"

"It's nothing." Curly said, frowning at her concern. "Used to happen all the time 'round my side of town."

"Yeah, I remember, I guess I just never put two and two together."

The semi-war of social classes that used to rage on their streets was hardly forgettable, but being middle class she'd never been much involved in it. It was easy to forget something you weren't a party to.

"Is it hard for Ponyboy, having all that attached to him?" Peggy asked. "You can't really escape a past like that, not here at least."

Curly shrugged. "I don't know. He gets on with it."

"Yeah, I guess he would." She said. "Anyway, so Tim, he's your brother right?"

"Yeah."

"And you've got a sister too, don't you?"

"Yeah, Angela. They're both pains in my asses but what can ya do." He said. "You got any siblings?"

"Five." She said. "One older, four younger."

"Shit that's a lotta kids." He said. "Bet they annoy the shit outta ya."

"No, not at all." She said. "I mean, sometimes they can get annoying but siblings always get on your nerves. Sides, I like having a big family. I don't think I could deal with being an only child."

"Sounds like fucking heaven to me."

"You don't mean that."

"Nah. They ain't always bad." Curly said. "So that what you want, a big family of your own?"

"Haven't really thought about it." Peggy admitted. "I'm not like Jennifer."

"What's that mean?"

"Jennifer won't date a guy unless she thinks he's husband material." Peggy said. "You know, will he financial support them, does he come from a good family, will he make good-looking babies, practical questions."

Curly looked almost alarmed at the prospect of someone thinking so in depth about the viability of their romantic partner. He didn't think any harder than their level attractiveness and skills in the bedroom.

"That mean Michael ain't husband material?"

Peggy's mouth gaped open as she processed the question. Of course he somehow brought the conversation back to her relationship, it was becoming a habit of his. For the life of her she couldn't understand his sudden interest, it wasn't like her and Michael had a very interesting relationship. Must've been another way of teasing her.

"He's not for me." She said. "I'm planning on ending things soon."

"Finally wisened up to the fact he's a dick." Curly said. "Thought you never would."

"He's not a dick, we just don't work." She said. "And if I break up with him now, in the right way, we might have a chance of preserving our friendship, somewhat."

"Ya think he'd be friends with you after you dump his ass?"

"Yes."

"I wouldn't."

"Well, that's you." She said. "Michael and I have known each other practically our whole lives, it'd be a shame to throw that all away over nothing."

"Your relationship is nothing?" Curly asked. "Shit, I almost feel bad for him now."

"I just meant, it's not like we're in love, and we haven't, you know, and the relationship just never progressed to anywhere serious, that's all." Peggy explained, her cheeks reddening at having made implications about her sex life in front of him. And by the way he was grinning she guessed he'd noticed. "Anyway, I had something to tell you."

"What?"

"Lori, she has a thing for you." Peggy said. "Asked me put in a good word for her."

"Lori." He mused, in such a manner that she imagined if he had a beard he'd be stroking it. "She's hot. I prefer blondes, but she's got a decent rack."

"She's also a nice person." Peggy added. "Which is important."

"Eh."

Before she could impress on him the importance of non-physical qualities, they were interrupted by a car pulling up beside them. Peggy immediately recognised it as Curly's car, so she assumed the driver to be his brother. It wasn't a hard guess considering how similar they looked.

From what she could see, Tim was taller than his brother and meaner looking, with a cold and penetrating stare that she refused to buckle under. Though, with Curly's face having taken on a hardened expression the family resemblance was almost startling.

"Whatcha doing here, Tim?" Curly asked, his eyes flicking towards Peggy. "Thought you had business?"

"I did, and it's done."

"Can I have my car back now, then?"

"And make me walk home, fuck off." Tim said, his eyes shifting towards Peggy. "Who's this?"

"I'm Peggy." She said, and Tim looked almost surprised that she'd spoken. She might've been the subject of the question but it hadn't been directed to her.

"She your girlfriend?"

"No." Curly quickly answered, and Peggy bristled beside him.

"We go to school together." She explained.

"Right." Tim said. "So you're the one tutoring him? Shit, I woulda been tutored in high school if they were as pretty as you."

"Tutors come in all shapes and sizes." Peggy said, matter-of-factly. "I'm sure you would've found one to your liking."

"C'mon, Tim," Curly grumbled. "Let's go."

"You gonna leave your tutor to walk home alone." Tim said. "Thought I raised ya better than that."

"You don't give a shit if she walks home alone." Curly said.

"Sure I do."

"It's fine." Peggy interjected. "I can take the bus."

Once again, she was the subject of the conversation and yet entirely removed from it. Neither Curly nor Tim would break their stare down to even look at her. Peggy shifted awkwardly beside Curly, unable to do anything but idlely watch their Mexican standoff.

"Nah, we'll take you home. Get in."

Tim said it in such a way that didn't leave much room to argue, so she didn't. The state of the car probably didn't help her unease, not that she expected Curly to be one to keep his car clean. Tidiness was not one of his virtues.

Even from the backseat she could practically hear Curly grinding his teeth, while Tim seemed far too pleased with himself. Peggy got the very distinct feeling that she'd just been used as a pawn in Tim's plan to one-up his brother, and it didn't sit well with her. Of course, neither did the fact that Curly had practically allowed it to happen.

When she told Tim her address he scoffed, and suddenly she felt self-conscious about her home. Her family weren't rolling in money, but being financially comfortable must seem like a huge step up to him.

"How long you tutoring him for?" Tim asked.

"Til school ends."

"If he lasts that long."

"Why wouldn't he?" She asked, defiantly.

"Shit, he ain't a good listener." Tim said. "Least he ain't never listened to me."

"Maybe you've never had anything of worth to listen to."

From the backseat she could see Tim's grip on the steering wheel tighten, his eyes narrowing. Perhaps it was a step too far, but it was what he deserved for so blatantly bad mouthing Curly. But then he's grip loosened, and his lips pulled into a bitter smirk, looking almost amused, like not many people had the gall to talk back to him but he actually enjoyed it when they did.

Tim didn't say anything more until they pulled up in front of her house, grunting in response to her thanks.

"I'll see you at school, Curly." Peggy said, and he jerked his head in something resembling a nod.

He'd spent the entire drive ignoring her, and she'd almost considered kicking the back of his chair to get his attention. It only would've pissed him off more, though. What did she care if Curly didn't pay attention to her anyway? They weren't even friends. At least not close friends. And if he wanted to be an ass then who was she to stop him.

Curly watched Peggy as she walked up her driveway. He wanted her to look back. He wasn't sure why, but he did. He also wasn't sure why he was so disappointed when she didn't.

"Whatcha doing hanging 'round with her?" Tim asked, pulling out from the kerb. "Prissy chicks like that ain't worth the hassle."

"It ain't like I chose to be tutored." Curly said. "You're the one that won't let me drop out."

"Doesn't mean you have to walk her home." Tim pointed out. "You like her or something?"

"She's just some chick." Curly shrugged. "She don't mean nothing."

"Good."

"You're one to talk." Curly scoffed.

"What's that s'posed to mean?"

The question didn't need an answer. They both knew what, or rather who, they were talking about. Tim was scowling at him with the rage he reserved solely for anything relating to Rose, and Curly was returning the glare with equal measure. Tim was goading him, Curly knew that he was, but he couldn't help himself.

"It means what it fucking means."

Curly was expecting his brother to hit him, or reply with an equally biting jab, but he said nothing. It was so damn typical of Tim to be so fucking hypocritical. Acting all high and mighty, like his judgment hadn't ever been compromised by a girl. It wasn't even like he actually liked Peggy or anything, she was just good company. Sure, he enjoyed flirting with her but why wouldn't he, she was good-looking and on occasion she flirted back, no guy would say no to that. But other than that, she was just a way of passing the time until he graduated.

"Did you get the job done?" Curly asked.

"Course I got the fucking job done, I ain't you." Tim said. "Those boys from Brumly'll have a hard time fucking with us with no hubcaps."

Curly grunted in response. Typical of Tim to act like Curly had done something wrong when he wasn't even involved. He couldn't do anything right where Tim was concerned.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Nine**

 _October 1968_

After a day of reflection Peggy had concluded that she was no fan of Tim Shepard, and she didn't think he was much of a fan of hers. He'd acted like an ass to her, completely unprovoked, and as far as she was concerned Curly was just as complicit by his inaction. She'd also decided that she wasn't going to let this one slide.

She'd looked for him throughout the day but she hadn't seen him at lunch, and they didn't share any classes. It wasn't until that afternoon that she saw him, hovering around his car with a couple of his friends.

"What'd he do?" Jane asked.

"What d'you mean?" Peggy replied.

"What did Curly do that has you glaring at him?" Jane clarified. "You look like you're out for blood."

"His brother was rude to me yesterday, and he didn't do anything to stop him." She explained. "And I'm not glaring. I'm just frowning in his general direction."

"Ooh, Tim Shepard, he's hot." Lori interjected.

"Thought Curly was the one you liked?" Jennifer asked.

"A girl can like multiple guys at once."

"Well, I think he's a jerk, but whatever." Peggy said. "Anyway, I'm gonna go talk to Curly."

"Confront him you mean." Jane said.

"Same difference."

Weaving her way through the crowd, she walked like a woman on a mission. Curly was leaning against his car smoking a cigarette, laughing at something Jimmy said to him. It wasn't until she stopped right in front of him that he noticed her.

"Can we talk?" She asked, crossing her arms. "In private."

A few of Curly's friends were waggling their eyebrows suggestively at them and whistling. They were acting like she'd asked for a sexual favour and not a conversation.

"Sure." Curly replied, nodding to his friends who then dispersed, but not without flashing her a few smug grins that she ignored. "Whatcha wanna talk about?"

"Yesterday."

"What about it?" He asked, his expression was neutral, a complete shift from his usual jovial demeanour around her. It was a shame, his goofy grin was more handsome.

"I want to know why you were acting like a jerk yesterday."

"How?" He asked, dropping his cigarette on the ground, crushing it under his shoe. "I didn't do nothing to you yesterday."

"Exactly, you did nothing." She said. "Your brother was acting like a real jerk to me and you didn't say anything."

"What was I s'posed to say?"

"I don't know, maybe defend me. I defended you." Peggy said. "Don't know why, since it's not like you've even thanked me for that. You ungrateful ass."

"I'm an ass?" He asked, raising his eyebrows incredulously.

"Yeah, you are." She said. She didn't actually think that but she wasn't about to back down now. "I don't know what kind of problems you have with your brother,"

"I ain't got any problems with Tim."

"But I don't want you pulling me into a pissing competition with your brother." She continued. "I haven't been anything but nice to you, and I don't understand why you acted like that."

"There's a lot you don't understand." He said, bitterly.

His anger was completely unjustified. There was nothing that she'd done that could've had him acting like this. Mere annoyance would've been an unwarranted response for everything she'd done for him.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means, that you, little miss high and mighty, don't understand everything." Curly said. "Tons of shit you don't get."

"And what, you and brother are one of those things?" She asked. "Maybe you're right, since I thought we were friends."

Curly seemed to falter for a moment, looking away while she kept her gaze steady. Somehow this had turned from a minor disagreement to an all out argument without. An apology, possibly an explanation, was all that she had wanted. He had completely overreacted, but maybe she had overestimated his easygoing nature.

The situation only went from bad to worse when Michael appeared at her side. Whether he thought he was sticking up for her, or he wanted to wallow in her anger towards Curly, she wasn't sure. By his self-satisfied smirk probably the latter.

"C'mon, Peggy." Michael said. "He ain't worth the trouble."

Curly scoffed, pushing himself off his car to stand straight, as if he was readying for a fight.

"See you ain't got the memo that she don't want you around no more." Curly spat out. "Guess she ain't gotten 'round to dumping your ass."

"Curly!" Peggy admomished, her eyes going wide.

"You don't know shit." Michael said, but he didn't exactly look confident in the claim.

"You're the one that don't know shit." Curly said. "Cause she told me yesterday she was gonna dump ya."

Michael's already tenuous confidence in their relationship status must have plummeted. His frown fading away as he turned to her, realisation setting in when she didn't refute the statement.

"That true?" He demanded, his fists balled up at his side.

There was no way out of this. No way to avoid admitting the truth that didn't involve lying to his face, and she couldn't do that, even if it might've hurt him less. He deserved her honesty if nothing else.

"I'm sorry,"

"Is it true?"

"Yes, yes it's true." Peggy blurted out. "This isn't the way I wanted to break up with you, but yes I wanted to break up with you."

"It's not like you even want to be with me." She quickly continued. "We both know you only asked me out because your mom told you to. And I only said yes because my mom wanted me to."

Michael's lips curled as he sneered at her. "So you were gonna dump me to slum with this worthless hood. Real classy of you."

Peggy wasn't sure who threw the first punch, but the next thing she knew Curly and Michael were tussling. Instantly their schoolmates encircled them, eager for the entertainment. Only Peggy tried to stop them, but her cries fell on deaf ears and she didn't dare try to physically part them for fear of getting on the wrong end of a misaimed hit.

Michael put up more of a fight than she expected, getting in a few good hits before the fight decidedly swung out of his favour. This was the first proper fight she'd ever actually seen, and she was glad she'd almost made it eighteen years without seeing such a thing. Fighting was a brutal and bloody endeavour she wanted nothing to do with.

"Alright, break it up." Principal Miller yelled, pushing through the crowd to get to them. "Now boys."

Finally they backed away from each other. Neither of them looked too worse for wear, though blood was dripping from Michael's nose, as they continued glare at each other.

"Lucky for you three detention hasn't started yet." Principal Miller said. "Get your stuff and come with me."

Peggy wanted to argue her innocence but the protest died in her throat when she realised everyone was staring at her. They may not have all heard what Michael had said, but word would soon spread about him fighting Curly over her. She hoped the fight boosted both their egos, because it certainly hadn't made things better for her. She may have felt guilty about her unceremonial break-up if she wasn't so furious with Michael for publically embarrassing her, or Curly for instigating the whole fiasco.

Ignoring both of them she followed Principal Miller back inside the school and into a classroom where two bored looking students sat. Taking a seat at the front desk, she pulled out her books. But she couldn't bring herself to do any work, not when she screwed things up so immensely. Her plans to preserve her friendship with Michael were ruined. There was no way he'd be able to even look at her after this, and if he hated her so would his mother, and she'd hate Peggy's mother. So she'd destroyed two relationships and her only gain was that she wouldn't have to suffer as Michael's girlfriend anymore. Not much of a consolation.

Curly was always on a high after a fight and this time was no different. He could easily suffer through detention for finally getting to beat that smug look off of Michael's face. He was already pissed off when Michael showed up, and he'd been wanting to hit the guy for months.

The self-satisfication faded a little when he saw how devastated Peggy looked. He probably shouldn't have thrown her under the bus like that, but he was annoyed with her at the time and wasn't thinking about how she'd feel about him having it out with her boyfriend. Or ex-boyfriend now. He didn't even try not to be pleased about that.

Detention was as boring as ever, especially when Peggy ignored his attempts to get her attention. It wasn't that he felt bad for having it out with Michael, that was long overdue, but she looked damn near tears. Maybe that's why he followed her when she bolted out of detention as soon as it ended. He didn't run though, more like a fast walk.

"Peggy," he called out, pushing through the front doors after her. He caught up to her at the bottom of the stairs, grabbing onto her arm and pulling her to a stop.

"What do you want?" She demanded, ripping her arm from his grip. "Come to gloat?"

"I ain't gonna gloat."

"Then what do you want?"

"To talk."

It was bad enough that he'd done what he did, but now he wanted to talk. As if he hadn't just treated her like absolute garbage and forced her to break up with her boyfriend in the worst possible way. And he had the nerve to say it so casually.

"Talk about what?" Peggy asked. "About how Michael probably hates me now because of you, which I deserve. Or how I'm going to have to go home and explain this to my mother, who will be devastated."

Curly shifted uncomfortably under her gaze. However he expected this to go it apparently didn't involve her yelling at him.

Peggy let out a sigh, the worst of her tirade over. "Look, I'm sorry for whatever I did to piss you off. Whatever it was I didn't mean it."

His eyes softened for a moment with what she thought to be guilt. Or at least that's what she hoped it was, it would be terrible for him to treat her like that and be remorseless for it.

"You didn't do anything." He admitted. "I was just pissed off."

"About what?"

Curly shrugged. "Stuff."

That was all he was going to say on the matter so she didn't press him. His secret troubles were no concern of hers.

"Let me give you a ride home." He offered. "It's the least I can do."

"Damn straight it is." She huffed, not waiting for him before walking over to his car.

As they pulled out of the parking lot she saw Michael in the side mirror, glumly watching them. Now he probably thought she had gone and jumped into Curly's arms as soon as she was single, confirming what he already suspected, that Curly had played a major role in their breakup. He hadn't. If anything it was a minor role, more like a recurring character than main, but she'd have a hard time convincing Michael of that.

"You don't deserve to be hated." Curly told her.

"Yes I do." She said. "That was a terrible way to break up with someone."

"Shoulda done it ages ago."

"Are you saying this is my fault?" She asked, incredulously.

"Shit, Peg, I'm tryna apologise here." Curly said. "Sorry for...what just happened."

He was grimacing in a way that looked like he'd just ate a lemon. Apologies must not often feature in his vocabulary, but at least he was trying. It wasn't enough to earn her forgiveness and she was still pissed as all hell, but it was a start.

"You're not a worthless hood." She told him. "Michael was wrong."

"Ya think?"

"Yeah."


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Ten**

 _October 1968_

Despite planning on telling her mother as soon as she got home, but she'd chickened out and put it off. A part of her was almost hoping that Michael's mother would tell her instead, at least then she wouldn't have to see her mother's face when all her dreams were shattered. But it had been a few days and her mother was blissfully unaware, and she wasn't that good of an actress.

Hearing a knock on her door she looked up from her bed where she'd been doing her homework. "Come in." She called out.

The door opened and her father stuck his head through the door. "Your mother wants to know if Michael's still coming for dinner."

"Oh shit." Peggy muttered. She'd completely forgotten about the forced invitation to dinner, what with the break up and all.

"What was that?" Howard asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Nothing."

"You sure?" He asked, looking at her not with disapproval but concern. He didn't need to say anything really, he always had a way with getting her to spill her guts to him. There was something so calming about his quiet presence that made him so easy to confide in.

"I broke up with Michael."

The words weren't as frightening as she thought they would've been. She hadn't actually said it out loud yet, had made no admission of guilt. It wasn't as bad as she'd predicted, but things rarely were.

"When?" He asked, stepping inside her room.

"Three days ago." She said. "Technically, Curly broke up with him for me, I guess."

"And how did he do that?"

"Well, I'd told him I was going to break up with Michael, and he was mad at me so he told Michael." Peggy explained. "Then they got into a fight and we all got detention."

Howard was silent for a few moments, processing the new information. "Curly," he finally said, "the boy you've been tutoring?"

"Yeah."

"Why was he mad at you?"

"I don't rightly know." She said, somewhat indignantly before reminding herself she was trying to get over it. "He apologised though."

Curly probably didn't deserve to be defended for what he'd done, but still she felt the need. He'd acted like such an asshole for no apparent reason, and yet she couldn't think of him as one. All she could of were all the times he'd been goofy and sweet, the way she liked him, not the tough guy show he put on for everyone else.

"Why didn't you say anything before?" Howard asked. "Not because of your mother?"

Peggy shifted uncomfortably, avoiding his eyes. "Maybe." She muttered under her breath.

"Peg, you shouldn't date someone simply because you think it'll make us happy." Howard said. "How far would you have gone with Michael if not for Curly? End of high school, college, would you have married him just to please your mother?"

"Of course not." She said. "Mom was just so happy about us being together. And I was afraid that if I broke up with him then she'd have to stop being friends with his mom, and I couldn't do that to them. I didn't want to disappoint her like that."

"You could never disappoint her." He said. "The only thing we want is for you to be happy."

"So, you're saying she'll take the news on the chin?" Peggy asked, raising her eyebrows.

"She'll get over it when she realizes it wasn't what you wanted." He said. "If it'll make you feel better, how 'bout I tell her now for you?"

"That would be preferable."

That wait was one of the longest in her life. All she could do was sit there running over all the worst case scenarios. Her mother bursting into tears was a recurrent feature in these. Surprisingly, Suzanne was dry-eyed when she pushed open Peggy's bedroom door, though more somber looking than usual.

"Mom." Peggy said tentatively, as if she were testing the waters.

"Oh, Peggy." Suzanne said, her reserve cracking as she rushed over to enveloped Peggy in a hug. "You poor thing, going through your first break-up all on your own."

She thought about protesting that she was perfectly capable of adequately coping with the situation, but decided to instead enjoy her mother's sympathy.

"You're not upset?"

"I'm upset that you didn't tell me." Suzanne said. "A girl's first break-up is an important milestone, and a painful one at that, she needs all the support she can get."

"So, you're okay with me breaking up with him?"

"Of course I am. I mean, it would've been lovely if you two had ended up together, just perfect really, quite fitting, but you can't force the issue." Suzanne said. "But, why weren't you happy with him? I mean, you were always such great friends, maybe it wasn't as bad as you thought."

"I just wasn't happy with him. It was only ever okay." She said. "I mean, it wasn't like you and Dad. I'd think about how much you two sacrificed to be together, and I could never imagine doing that for Michael."

It was a lie, but the truth would do more harm than good. Still, the words felt like acid in her mouth.

For once her mother was quiet, as if she was in contemplation, remembering her old life, the one she'd left behind so long ago. Peggy often wondered if her mother ever regretted abandoning everything she knew for love, to take that leap of faith knowing there was no guarantee things would work out. Maybe it got easier as the years passed, the memories growing fainter and fainter. Maybe that only made it worse, knowing that one day it would feel like those memories belonged to someone else.

"Well, I've sent Dad to go and get ice cream and chocolate." Suzanne said, now practically buzzing with excitement. "I thought we could watch some movies, and you could tell me all about this Curly boy."

Suzanne gave her a knowing look, which she ignored. She thought that if she didn't bring up Curly she would avoid having to talk about him. Not that there was anything to say. Tutoring someone was hardly gossip worthy, and she hadn't done anything with Curly that was. Of course, that wouldn't stop her mother from prying.

They made it through one movie and a tub of ice cream before Suzanne took the opportunity to question her.

"Will you tell me about Curly now?" She asked

Peggy shrugged. "Not much to tell, he's just the boy I tutor."

"That can't be all there is to it." Her mother scoffed. "He didn't break up with your boyfriend for you for nothing."

"He was just mad and taking it out on me."

"But you told him that you were planning to break up with Michael?" Suzanne asked and she nodded. "So, you trusted him enough to tell him that?"

"I guess." Peggy muttered. "We're just friends, I swear, we don't like each other like that."

That was one thing she was still sure of, at least. Curly had taken his anger out on her to make himself feel better. It wasn't jealousy or some intricate plan to date her, just displacement of emotion, plain and simple.

"Is he cute?"

"Objectively so."

"Do you think he's cute?"

Peggy held in a groan. "Yes." She admitted. "But that doesn't mean anything."

Suzanne grinned gleefully, almost squeaking in excitement when all Peggy had done was admit to finding him attractive. She hadn't even admitted to being attracted to him, quite the opposite really.

"Well, we'll see what happens." Suzanne said, looking as if she knew exactly what was going to happen.

"Nothing's gonna happen." Peggy claimed.

"We'll see."

This time Peggy let out the groan.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Eleven**

 _October 1968_

At the time it seemed appropriate to give Michael some space to process the break-up and cool off, but it had been a week and he had avoided all her recent attempts to talk to him. All she wanted to do was apologise, maybe even explain herself, but every time she called his house he was unavailable. She'd considered going to his house, but had thought better of it. She deserved his resentment, she knew she did, all she wanted was a chance to make things right.

Even at school he had taken to avoiding her, and not in an inconspicuous way either. Though, she supposed with their very public break-up she couldn't expect him to act any other way. She'd resolved to dead the issue, leave him to get over it himself, but this resolution fell rather flat when she caught him in the hallway. She was running late for class and there was no one else around, making it a good a time as any.

"Michael." She called out, trying not to be hurt when he gave her a cold look. "Can we talk?"

He narrowed his eyes, but nodded, and she walked closer. "What do you want to talk about?"

"I want to apologise,"

"What for?" He interrupted. "The way I see it, you did me a favour."

"How so?" She asked, cautiously, not liking how this conversation was going. She'd wanted to apologise and leave, but he had other ideas.

Michael shrugged, nonchalantly. "Don't want a girlfriend who's two-timing with some hood."

"It wasn't like that and you know it." Peggy said. "Curly had nothing to do with me wanting to break up with you."

"So, you two ain't together now?"

"Of course not." She said. "I know you have every right to be pissed at me for how I broke up with you, but I didn't think you were this insecure."

"Insecure?" He asked, indignantly. "At least I didn't half-ass our relationship to try and please my mother."

"Yes you did." Peggy spat back. "And now you're embarrassed so you're trying to blame this on Curly, because it's easier to think some other guy took me away than to admit you didn't make me happy."

It was a direct assertion, perhaps too pointed in its delivery but she hardly cared. If he wanted to go around throwing false accusation then she was going to drop some truths on him. She'd spent the past week beating herself up about it, but all he'd done was dig himself deeper into these illusions he'd created.

"Well, I didn't realize you were such a slut." He said, venomously. "Of course you're not with Shepard, probably just jumped into bed with him."

Peggy clenched her fists at her side, jutting out her chin at him. If she were more reckless she might've punched him for saying such a thing. There was no truth to his claims and they both knew it, but it's accuracy didn't matter. The very fact that he would use such a word to describe her, to her face no less, was enough confirmation for her that whatever relationship they had was unsalvageable.

"You're an asshole." She growled, shoving a pointed finger in his face. "And you can take that apology I was going to give you and shove it up your ass."

Stalking past him, she headed in the opposite direction of her classroom. Going to class was the right thing to do, but then she'd have to act like everything was fine and there was a possibility that she couldn't do that. Breaking out into tears in the middle of Math was hardly an appealing prospect. Of course having never skipped class before she wasn't exactly sure where to go where she wouldn't be caught, but outside seemed the safer bet.

Curly hadn't come to school intending to skip class, he never did, but smoking under the bleachers was more appealing than sitting in class with a bunch of teachers that couldn't give less of a shit about him. The feeling was mutual, of course. So far he'd been pretty consistent in his attendance, for him at least. It wasn't like he was going to every class, just more than usual.

He hadn't skipped with any of his friends this time, wasn't with any of them when he decided not to go to class and couldn't be bothered to find them. He was regretting it now, though, it was pretty boring smoking by yourself. He thought about skipping the rest of the day and heading downtown to see if Tim needed anything, but the Brumly Gang had been quiet ever since they'd agreed to the rumble on Saturday.

When he'd heard the door to the building open he instinctively dropped the cigarette onto the ground, pressing it down with his foot, looking up expecting to see a teacher planning on dragging him back to class. Instead he saw Peggy. She had to be the last person he would've expected to skip, she was too damn well behaved for that. He would've thought it would piss him off, but he kind of liked it.

Stepping out from behind the bleachers, they locked eyes. Peggy looked surprised to see him, not that he knew why. There were a few moments of staring before she started walking towards him. He was glad she hadn't waited any longer, that would've been embarrassing.

She looked pissed as all hell, and if he wasn't sure that the anger was directed at him he might've found it attractive. Hell, he still found it attractive. He liked seeing her riled up, liked it even more when he was the reason.

"Whatcha doing?" He asked.

"Don't know. I guess I'm skipping." She said. "You too?"

Curly nodded. "Still mad 'bout last week."

"No. Yes. Maybe." Peggy replied. "For someone that makes skipping class a habit this isn't the best hiding spot."

"You only saw me cause I wanted ya to." Curly smirked at her. "Sides, I usually hide out behind that shed over there."

Not waiting for her to reply, he started striding towards the chain link fence. Peggy didn't immediately follow, but she was at his side sooner then he'd expected.

"I shouldn't be doing this." She said. "We could get in trouble."

"C'mon, Jones, live a little." He said. "'Sides, I ain't gonna get ya in trouble."

He'd laid down the challenge and there was no way she wouldn't take it, she couldn't help herself. It was almost endearing.

"I doubt that." Peggy muttered, pulling at her sleeves, glancing over her shoulder every so often.

"That's a fence." She pointed out, raising an eyebrow at him, looking between it and him like she expected him to remove the obstacle.

"Yes it is."

"I'm wearing a skirt."

"Yeah, I noticed." Curly said. "Can't climb a small fence in a skirt?"

"It's not ideal." She replied, her face twisting in concentration as she eyed up the fence. By now he knew her well enough to know she'd climb the fence, just to prove to him she could.

"I promise I won't look up your skirt." Curly said, before hauling himself over the fence, landing on the other side.

"Gee, what a gentleman."

Peggy was more graceful than him, took longer too. She kept making sure her skirt hadn't flown up, glancing suspiciously at him. Of course, he was checking her out and wasn't trying to hide it, but what did she expect, that he wouldn't take the opportunity to stare at her ass.

By the time she climbed over to the other side he was sick of waiting. Reaching out he placed his hands around her waist, lifting her down to the ground. She glanced up at him with wide eyes and what looked like a blush. Maybe that was why he kept his hands there for a few seconds longer then necessary. He liked it when she blushed, made her look all innocent or something.

"Thanks." She said, sheepishly, inching away from him slightly. "What do you do when you hide out here?"

"Smoke, drink," Curly shrugged, leading her behind the building. "Anything but go to class."

"Oh, the horror." Peggy teased, grinning at him.

"So," Curly said, sitting down against the wall. "If you ain't still pissed at me then what are ya pissed about?"

Peggy was careful in making her way to the ground, tucking her legs underneath her in as ladylike a manner as she could manage. Curly smirked at that, his eyes flicking over her legs and she involuntarily started blushing. She could've kicked herself for acting like some giddy schoolgirl, especially after what Michael said to her. She shouldn't be skipping class at all, let alone skipping with Curly. But she was in too deep to turn back now.

"I never said I wasn't still mad at you." She clarified. "But I'm currently more mad at Michael."

"What'd he do?"

"I've been trying to apologise and he's been ignoring me." She explained. "Then he finally agrees to talk to me and he acts like an absolute ass."

"It's been a week," Curly scoffed. "Shit, I wouldn't be talking to ya either."

"Whose side are you on?" She muttered bitterly.

"Yours, o'course." He said. "What'd he say?"

Peggy shook her head. "It doesn't matter."

"Why you pissed if it don't matter?" Curly asked.

He was trying to goad her into spilling but she wouldn't fall for it. Telling Curly would only make things worse. She wasn't sure what he would do, but she knew that beating Michael up was a distinct possibility, and she couldn't be responsible for the repercussions of that.

Peggy shrugged. "I don't care what he thinks anyway."

It was a lie. She cared very much about what Michael thought, she didn't want him to think less of her, though he clearly already did. It was bad enough that he was thinking these things but if other people started thinking it too, well, she couldn't very well get Curly to beat up the whole school.

"What do you do if there're people on the field?" She asked.

"Huh?"

"If people are using the field, how do you get here?" She asked. "They'd see you wouldn't they?"

"Just skip the whole day." Curly replied. "Not many people using the field now anyway."

"Yeah, too cold for sport." She agreed. "S'pose you'll be skipping more once track starts up in Spring."

"Nah, they're all too busy running 'round, they don't notice much of anything."

"Excuse me, I run track." She said in mock annoyance.

"That explains it." Curly teased, and she playfully smacked his arm. "You really run track?"

"Yes!"

"You any good?"

"I'd like to think so. I do win on occasion." Peggy said. "There aren't many competitions for girls though. They're all male only."

"Well, that's just fair." Curly said.

"Oh, I'm absolutely certain I could beat you in a race." She said. "You'd be coughing up your lungs half way through with the amount of cigarettes you smoke."

"I run plenty fast from the cops."

"So you just need the right motivation." She said. "And winning's not enough of a motivation for you. Just not being arrested."

"Pretty much, yeah."

"Duly noted." She laughed. "Do you often find yourself running from the police?"

"Only every other day."

"So it's a scheduled law-breaking?"

"Oh yeah, it's all planned out."

Peggy very much doubted that anyone planned to get arrested. She also doubted that Curly ever planned anything out, thinking ahead wasn't in his nature. His impulsivity was probably the main cause of most of his arrests.

"What's it like, being arrested?"

Curly cocked his head, frowning slightly before smirking. "It ain't nothin I can't handle." He assured her, puffing his chest out proudly.

"You know you don't have to do that with me, the tough act." She said. "I won't think less of you."

The smirk faded from his face to be replaced by a grimace. As much as she intended the words to be comforting they clearly hadn't hit their mark. She might've regretted making him uncomfortable if she didn't think it was something he needed to hear.

Shifting closer to him, she kept her gaze levelled with his, trying to maintain a soft expression when she innately wanted to meet his ill-temper with her own righteous anger. Curly watched her with suspicion, as if he were waiting for the other shoe to drop, for her to take it back and call him a pussy for not taking it like a man. Maybe that was what he was used to.

"What was your longest stint?" Peggy asked.

"Six months in the reformatory three years ago." Curly smirked bitterly. "Got caught robbing a liquor store."

"You were drinking when you were fifteen?" She asked, wide-eyed.

Curly let out a curt laugh. "I've been drinking since I was fourteen." He said. "Bet you've never drunk before."

"I told you, I'm an athlete, that requires a healthy lifestyle." She said. "Which doesn't involve drinking."

"Sounds batshit boring." Curly said, leaning his head back against the wall, tilting his head towards her.

This wasn't the first time she saw his eyes but it was the first time she really looked at them, a darker blue than her own but still light. It would be cliche to say they looked like the sky, and terribly vague given the changing colour of said sky.

"Are you calling me boring, Curly Shepard?"

"Just your lifestyle."

Peggy rolled her eyes, her cheeks warming when he kept watching her.

"You're hair's out." He said, as if just noticing.

"Yeah, I couldn't find a hair tie and I was running late." She explained.

Curly reached out his hand, taking a strand of her hair and wrapping it around his finger. "I like it."

"You do?"

"Yeah."

"Oh." She said, quietly. "Thanks."

Curly leaned back, grinning devilishly like her response was exactly what he'd planned to elicit. It probably was. He was more experienced then her in flirtation, he knew what to say or do to make girls fall over themselves for him. She hadn't expected him to put those moves on her, and she didn't like him thinking he could make her act like a lovesick fool.

It was bad enough that he'd checked out her ass, because there was no way he hadn't looked. Not that she could entirely be annoyed at him for that. After all, she'd looked at his enough times to have noticed it wasn't bad to look at.

"You know, I was planning to keep treating you with cool civility." Peggy said. "I even managed it for our last tutoring session."

"Why not now?"

"Guess I'm just too nice a person to be mean to anyone." She suggested.

"You ain't that nice." He said, his voice low and playful.

"Really?"

"Yeah, I think you got a little mean in you."

"So you just don't bring out the mean in me?" She asked.

"Baby, I don't bring out the mean in anyone."

"Ha." She snorted. "Whatever you say."

There he went again, slathering on the charm, trying to push the conversation back into safer territory, somewhere that he could control. It should've annoyed her, the first time someone flirts with her and he's only doing it to avoid feeling vulnerable. But she understood it, and she couldn't find it in herself to be angry.

Peggy glanced down at her watch. "We should head back." She suggested, getting to her feet. "The bell's about to go."

"I don't think I wanna go to class." Curly mused.

"You're going. There's no use in me tutoring you if you can't graduate because of poor attendance." She said, grabbing onto his hand and pulling him up. "C'mon."

Curly's resolve must've have been very strong since there was no way she could've gotten him to his feet without his compliance. He looked amused by her insistence, and probably only agreed because he thought it was entertaining.

"I guess I'll see you around." Peggy said, as they pushed through the doors, stepping into the now crowded hallway.

"Maybe." He shrugged, with an air of forced nonchalance.

"I'll see you later." She repeated, more firmly.

Curly shot her a grin, backing away into the crowd.

"Asshole." She muttered to herself, but smiled anyway.


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Twelve**

 _October 1968_

Rumbles always set Curly on edge, but it was a good kind of energy. The kind that had him almost jumping up and down, eager to get in their and fight. Everything made sense when he wasn't fighting. He didn't have to worry about school, or Tim, or fucking up. He knew how to fight and he knew he was damn good at it, and that was all he needed to know.

"Man, it's fucking cold." Jimmy muttered beside. "I wanna get this shit done so we can go home."

"Don't worry, we'll whip 'em quick." Curly said. "They're a bunch of pussys."

"Don't get cocky." Tim warned, coming to stand beside Curly. "You ready for this?"

"Always."

"Good." Tim said. "Don't let them fuck you up, cause I ain't carrying your ass outta here."

"Should worry 'bout your own ass." Curly scoffed. "I've got mine."

"Whatever." Tim muttered, gesturing over to the group of boys huddled on the opposite end of the lot. "Alright," he announced. "Let's get this shit done."

The rest of the gang gathered together, throwing away beer bottles and cigarettes. The boys from Brumly were all scrawny, their punches didn't pack much of a hit. They were used to fighting with anything they could get their hands on, but they'd ruled skin-on-skin only. The rumble would be over before it really began, and Curly could go and cool off at Buck's with a beer, maybe even get laid.

Tim threw the first punch, and everything erupted into chaos.

Curly ran at one of the boys, grabbing him around the middle and throwing him to the ground. He was too stunned to try and stop Curly when he started punching him, and when he did it was too late to matter. But Curly had been paying too much attention to the guy on the floor, and didn't notice another coming up behind him until he felt himself thrown backwards by his shirt.

Landing on the ground with a thud, he barely had time to react before he was kicked in the stomach. Rolling over he was kicked again, this time in the head. Before he could be kicked again, he groped around on the ground, grabbing a hand full of dirt and flinging it in the boys face.

It gave him the chance to stumble to his feet, but by the time he did the other guy was throwing his fists. In the flurry of hits they both managed to make contact, and somehow ended back on the ground, rolling around trying to punch each other and get to their feet at the same time.

A loud bang rung out through the abandoned lot, and Curly jumped away from the fight, looking wildly around to find the source of the sound. It wasn't hard to find. He knew what a gunshot sounded like, and he knew it must've come from the gun currently being waved around by the leader of the Brumly Gang.

Curly felt himself being hauled to his feet, and was about to turn around and start swinging when he saw that it was Tim who had grabbed him.

"Fucking get outta here." He ordered, shoving Curly into action. "Go!"

Sprinting away, Curly didn't stop to look back. The rest of the boys all scattered. Gunshots meant cops and cops meant being arrested. No one was going to hang around for that, didn't matter if it meant losing.

Weaving through the streets and jumping over a couple of fences, Curly finally reached his car. There were faint sounds of police sirens in the background, and it was only a matter of time before the cops were swarming the lot.

"Shit."

The only way to his house was past the lot, and if he went that way now there's no way he wouldn't be arrested. Pulling out from the curb, he headed in the opposite direction.

He wasn't sure where he was going. The houses were starting to look nicer, and nothing was familiar, until one house caught his eye. He didn't know if it was his subconscious or some shit that had him passing Peggy's house. Maybe it was a coincidence. The house wasn't large but it might as well have been a mansion to him. Two storeys, porch and a nice garden, practically paradise compared to where he grew up.

If he didn't know why he'd gone there he sure as shit didn't know why he stopped outside of the house. It was too late for her to be awake, and even if she was there was no way he could talk to her. He could throw a rock at her window like they do in cheesy movies, but he didn't know which window was hers. And if he woke up her parents Peggy would probably kill him. So he just sat there instead.

He'd planned on waiting there for awhile before leaving. Maybe drive around a bit until it was safe to go home or to Buck's. But any ideas of leaving disappeared when he saw a figure walking through the darkness towards the car. From afar all he could tell was that they were female, and for a second he panicked thinking it was Peggy's mother.

But it wasn't, it was Peggy, dressed in a nightgown with a coat wrapped around her, looking both confused and pissed. He almost grinned. She looked good, bed-hair and all. He'd always thought she looked pretty, but recently he'd been noticing it a lot more. The way her eyes lit up when she was explaining something to him, her little encouraging smile, even her competitive face was becoming attractive to him.

"It's 1am, what're you doing here?" She asked, not waiting for an invitation before opening his car door and sliding in. She tried to hold in her gasp when she saw his face, but he heard it. "What happened to you?"

"There was a rumble." Curly explained. "One of those bastards from Brumly pulled a gun, had to split."

"Are you okay?" She asked, hurriedly, her eyes searching him over as if expecting to find a bullet wound.

"I'm okay."

He hadn't really thought about the shooting until then. It hadn't occurred to him that he could have easily been shot. He could've been bleeding out right now, or already dead. Shot down like Dallas Winston had been years ago. Nothing but another dead hood.

"Was anyone hurt?"

"Don't think so." He said. "Didn't really hang around to find out."

"Oh." She said softly, looking back at the house like she was trying to decide something. "Did you want to take me somewhere?"

"What?"

"There's a park, a couple blocks away." She said. "We could go there. That way my parents won't wake up and notice me outside in the car with a strange boy in my pyjamas."

"Right." Curly said, smirking slightly to himself. He hadn't come to her house planning on getting Peggy alone, but he wasn't going to complain about it now.

Curly followed her directions, pulling up outside a small park. It wasn't much to look at, with only a swing set and a slide, but it was better kept than anything around his neighbourhood.

"I bring my younger siblings here sometimes." Peggy said. "My older sister used to bring me when I was a kid, so it's kind of a family tradition."

Curly nodded slightly, not sure what to say to her. It had never been hard for him to talk to anyone, let alone Peggy, but suddenly he didn't know what he could say. Not when she was looking at him like he was glass about to break. It was easier to sit in silence and not have to face what had happened, to not have to think about the fact he'd turned up at her house in the middle of the car and she let him whisk her away. No, not let, it was her idea after all, whatever that meant.

"Say something." She whispered, but he still didn't reply. "Curly," she said, inching closer slightly, "You're scaring me."

"Shit, baby, I'm sorry," he mumbled. "That's the last thing I want."

 _Baby?_ He could've kicked himself. What the hell was he calling her that for? It wasn't like he was goading her like last time, it just slipped out. But she ignored it so he he did too.

"You got a first aid kit in here?" Peggy asked, and he shook his head. "Alright...alcohol and some clean material?"

"Got a bottle of whiskey on the floor there." He said, jerking his head towards it.

"Okay." She said, picking it up and not asking him why it was there. "Clean material?"

"My shirt?" He suggested.

Peggy looked derisively down at his dirt covered top. "That's not clean. What else?"

Curly glanced around his car. There were empty packets of chips and other rubbish, but nothing clean she could use, so he shook his head.

"Okay then." She said, looking down at her nightgown then back up at him. "This is my favourite nightgown."

"You don't gotta clean me up." He said. "I'll be fine."

"No, it's fine." She said, though she didn't sound like she was thrilled with the idea. "I just don't know how to tear it."

Curly leaned across her to reach into the glove box, pulling out his switchblade. "Here."

"Okay." She said, eyeing the weapon warily. "Just don't cut me."

He'd expected her to do it herself, but when he thought about it he wasn't surprised she was uncomfortable with using a switchblade. It wasn't like she'd ever had a need before. Peggy moved closer, pulling open her coat to give him an opening, revealing the blue silk nightgown that clung tightly to her body.

Curly could feel himself reacting to the sight of her body, nicely outlined, but he tried to push those thoughts away. She was watching him expectedly, and he couldn't make her wait because he was a hot-blooded teenage boy. Reaching his hand out he took ahold of the material, using the blade to cut into it. Peggy breathed in sharply, but he didn't know if that was from the feeling of his hands on her thigh or the thought of a knife that close to her skin. As he ripped the material he tried his best to tear as little as possible off. He figured Peggy wanted to keep some of her modesty.

"There you go." He said, handing the strip over to her.

Peggy was still breathing heavily as she poured the whisky on the cloth, and he almost smirked at the thought that he had this effect on her.

"This'll sting." She warned.

"You gonna enjoy this?" He asked, wryly.

"Think of it as recompense for the dress."

It stung like a bitch as she wiped away at his face, but he wasn't going to let her see that. Wouldn't want her to enjoy it too much.

"Well, the damage is mostly superficial, from what I can tell. Good thing too since I'm no nurse." Peggy said. "So, why were you fighting?"

"Just stuff." He shrugged. "Need a good fight every now and again. Get restless otherwise."

"You need to find another outlet for your restlessness." She advised. "You could've been hurt. Or arrested."

"You'd care if I got arrested?"

"Course I do." She said. "I can't exactly come tutor you in prison."

Curly grinned at that. Maybe that was why he turned up at her house. He could've gone to Angela's, she would've patched him up just fine, but she would've bitched him out the whole time. And there was no way he'd get the kind of care from Angela that he was getting from Peggy.

"What if you had gotten hurt?" She asked, softly, her eyes were so wide and full of worry that it felt like a punch to the gut to him, harder than any of the hits he'd already taken that night.

"Baby, you know I can take care of myself." He said, his voice low and comforting.

There he went again, but the more he said it the less wrong it felt, if it ever felt wrong in the first place.

"Oh, Curly." She whispered, shaking her head slightly.

Before he could get offended by her apparent lack of faith in his fighting abilities, she leant forward, latching her arms around his neck. He was slow to react. Hugs weren't exactly familiar territory for him, but when a girl throws themselves at you, you don't push them away.

Curly shifted towards her, sliding one of his arms inside her coat to settle on her back, the other loosely gripping her waist. Her breath was hot on his neck, her fingers tangled in his hair. He could smell her perfume, faint but still there. Maybe he was coming down from the high of the fight and searching for something to fill that hole, but right now all he wanted was her. To feel her closer, pressed up against him, those legs of hers on top of his.

This probably wasn't what she had expected when she'd gone in for the hug, but she hadn't pulled away yet. So he let his hand drift down to her knee, gently rubbing circles into her skin. Her breath quickened, but she still she didn't move. He slowly raised his hand up her leg, stopping at the hem of her now torn dress. He didn't think she'd let him get any further than that, but a part of him wanted to try.

The buttons on her coat were digging in to his shoulder. He wanted to take it off. He wanted to take it all off. Her coat, her nightgown, his clothes. He wanted her naked body pressed against his and he wanted it right now. Damn the neighbours.

But she pulled away.

"You should take me home."

The words were the only certain thing about her. She was watching him with a slight frown, like she was searching for something. If she wanted an explanation she wasn't going to get one.

Peggy slipped away from him. It was cold without her pressed against him. Curly reached his arm across the back of the seat, his fingers ghosting against her back. She didn't move away, just kept giving him confused looks. The drive back was short, and he almost wished they'd gotten lost.

"Are you okay?" She asked, and he hated how timid she sounded.

"Yeah."

"Okay." She muttered. Opening the door, she made to get out, hesitating when he said her name.

"Why'd you come with me?"

Peggy gave him a small smile. The kind that made him ache in ways he didn't understand but wanted to feel again.

"You looked like you needed someone to talk to."

She slipped out of the car, walking up the path to her house, and all he could think about was kissing her.


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Thirteen**

 _October 1968_

Curly regretted agreeing to pick Angela up from her doctors appointment immediately after agreeing. There were plenty of better things he could be doing rather than listen to his sister complain about getting fat and having mood swings. It was like she was on her period, but this was constant and so much more painful for him. Probably her too, but he struggled to care after she tried to tell him about her sore boobs. There are some things a brother doesn't need to know about his sister.

Waiting in the parking lot was boring him shitless, but there wasn't anything nearby for him to do. He could pick a fight, but his face was still hurting from the last one. Peggy had cleaned up the blood, but that didn't stop the bruises. He'd thought about going over to her house the next day but didn't think her parents would let him in.

She might not have even wanted to see him. Who the fuck knew with her? One second she was throwing herself at him and the next she was demanding to go home. And he'd stupidly spent the last few days thinking of nothing but her. The feeling of his hands on her legs, her fingers in his hair, of being that damn close to her. It was fucking pathetic but he couldn't help it.

He hadn't seen her since the weekend. When Jane had told him that Peggy was sick and couldn't go to tutoring he thought she was avoiding him. But then she was out for the next two days, and she wouldn't miss that much school just to avoid him.

A sharp rapping on the passenger window made Curly damn near jump out of his skin.

"Sorry to interrupt." Angela said, getting in. "What you thinking 'bout so hard you forgot your pregnant sister?"

Curly ignored her as he pulled out of the parking lot. That was usually his way of dealing with Angela's bullshit.

"You got any smokes?" She asked.

"In the glovebox." He instructed. "Thought the doctor told you to quit?"

Angela only huffed in response, reaching into the glovebox. "The fuck's this?" She demanded, lifting up the strip of bloodied silk between her fingers.

"Nothing." Curly said, snatching it away. "I needed to be patched up after the rumble."

"Who patched you up?" She asked. "Cause that ain't from one of your shirts."

"Nobody."

"Nobody wearing silk."

"Geez, Angel, drop it." He snapped. "I'm doing you a fucking favour and you're fucking going on 'bout some chick who don't even matter."

"You sure she don't matter?"

"Yes!"

"Don't think she'd like to hear that."

"You don't even know who she is." Curly scoffed.

There was no way Angela knew anything about Peggy. They certainly hadn't crossed paths at school, and Tim hadn't run his mouth to her. He didn't want Angela to know. She'd only find something to bitch about, there was always something to complain about with his sister. He didn't need to get Peggy involved in that.

"God, you and Tim have turned into a bunch of lovesick fools." Angela muttered. "Think I'm the only sane one around here."

Curly doubted that. She was also the only one married and having a baby at seventeen. He might be an idiot around girls sometimes but he wasn't that stupid.

"What'd the doctor say?" He asked.

"I'm fat and the baby's fine."

"Yeah, ya are lookin' a bit heavier these days." Curly smirked.

Angela slapped his arm, harder than he expected. "Asshole. You should be grateful you're a man and don't have to deal with this shit."

Curly huffed in response. Angela started talking about one of her friends whose boyfriend dumped her. Or maybe she dumped him. He wasn't listening and Angela didn't notice.

"So, can you do it?"

"Huh?"

Angela rolled her eyes. "Ma's giving me our old crib, can you swing by home and get it?"

"Sure." He muttered. "Can't believe she kept it. Must be fallin' apart by now."

"Probably." She agreed. "But it ain't like we can get a new one."

It still didn't seem real to him. His little sister, a mother, no fucking way. Only two seconds ago she'd been playing with dolls in her room and now look at her. He would've pitied her but he knew how much she hated that. No use in sympathy, it didn't make things better.

There was no one home when they arrived. Not that that was strange. With Angela living with Danny, it seemed like there was never anyone home these days. The only thing it was good for was sleeping and eating, if they even had any food at the time.

The crib was packed away in a dingy box in the living room. Curly grabbed it and threw it in the backseat, and they were out of there in only a few minutes.

"Alright." He announced, stopping in front of the apartment complex. "Here you go."

"You ain't gonna carry it up for me?" She asked. "I'm pregnant for Christ's sake."

"Fine." He grumbled, picking up the box. "Since you're a fucking invalid."

"You're a doll." She said, with mock sweetness.

He really fucking regretted agreeing to this whole thing by the time they reached the apartment. Angela complained the entire walk up the stairs, like she wasn't the one carrying a crib.

"You can put it over there." Angela said, waving towards the corner.

"Need anything else?" He asked, praying to God she didn't make any more requests. Knowing her, she'd probably ask him to put the crib together while she watched.

"Yeah." She said, a glint in her eye. "Who patched you up?"

"You ain't gonna drop this, are you?"

"Nuh." She replied. "Is it the girl whose boyfriend you fought with?"

"How'd you know about that?"

"I still have friends that go to school, Curly." She said. "So, it is her?"

"Didn't say that."

"Didn't have to."

"Why you even care?" He asked. "Ain't like I'm bringing the girl home."

He didn't need to ask. She wanted to know because she liked gossip, always had. It didn't matter who it was about.

"Why not?" Angela asked, curiously. "Did she bust your ass 'bout fighting while she was fixing ya face?"

"No."

Peggy hadn't accepted his fighting without question, but she hadn't made any complaints. That would've made more sense to him than what she had done. He was still trying to wrap his head around her behaviour. It didn't make any sense to him. Hell, his own mother hadn't shown that much concern when he'd come home in worse states.

"D'you wanna bring her home?"

"What?" He asked. "It ain't like that."

"Then why you getting so defensive?"

"Cause you're pissing me off." He snapped back. "So, drop it."

"Whatever you say." Angela scoffed. "Asshole."

"Fuck you." He replied, jerking the door open. "You're welcome by the way."

Why Angela thought she had any right sticking her nose in his business, he didn't know, but he was damn sick of it. It hadn't been until recently Peggy had occurred to him in any kind of way, let alone in a relationship kind. He liked messing with Michael, but he hadn't seriously wanted Peggy for himself. Sure, he wouldn't say no to it, but he wasn't about to go out of his way to get her.

They hadn't even kissed. He wanted to, though. That night and every night since. But he'd thought about kissing girls before, it didn't mean anything. All he needed to do was kiss her, get it out of his system, and then he could forget all about her. It was that simple, he hoped.


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Fourteen**

 _October 1968_

Buying candy the day before Halloween was a bit of a tradition in Peggy's family, and not one she entirely agreed with. If it were up to her it would be bought the week before when all the good candy was still left, but her mother was not as organised as her. At least for Christmas her father made sure to get the presents before Christmas Eve.

Of course, taking her three younger siblings candy shopping was rather counter-intuitive, but her mother was busy and Vickie was out someplace she wouldn't say with someone she wouldn't name. It was becoming a habit of hers, and even if their mother thought little of it Peggy wasn't so unconcerned.

"Hey Peg," Karen said as they climbed out of the car. "Can we pick the candies?"

"You know you're not going to get to eat then." Peggy said.

"There might be some left over." Ruth said hopefully.

"And we can always put some aside." Karen suggested.

"There will be no putting them aside." Peggy said, grabbing one of the shopping carts. "But yes, you can pick the candies. Mikey, you get the chocolates, Karen and Ruth you get hard and soft candies, five packets each"

Peggy had planned to go to the candy aisle last, once the rest of the shopping was done but her siblings had other ideas. Although she was the youngest Ruth was leading the way, practically running towards the aisle, with Karen and Mikey in hot pursuit. They were having so much fun that Peggy couldn't bare to tell them to slow down. She did fasten her pace to catch up with, turning sharply around the corner of the aisle and almost running straight into someone.

"Sorry." She said. "Oh, hi."

It was far from eloquent but she was surprised she was actually able to speak when faced with Curly Shepard. She'd spent days contemplating what to say to him, whether or not to bring up that night that felt almost like a dream. If not for her torn nightgown she might've thought it was a dream, one she kept replaying in her mind, but a dream no less.

"Hi." Curly replied, watching her with those eyes, and speaking to her with that voice. She allowed herself to glance down at his hands, and almost shivered at the memory of them running over her skin.

Until that night she'd never thought about what Curly's hands would feel like on her skin, but now she was having trouble thinking of anything but that. Nothing with Michael had ever made her feel that way. Michael's touches certainly hadn't kept her up at night.

Not that it mattered what Curly did or didn't make her feel. Nothing about that night was appropriate, and it couldn't happen again. She had to set a good example for her younger siblings, and jumping into a car with a boy late at night was hardly exemplary behaviour. And that wasn't even considering how messy things would become between her and Curly, or how it would look should something happen with him so shortly after she broke up with Michael. No, it was better to take his lead and act like the whole thing hadn't happened.

"They yours?" He asked, jerking his head to the children ravaging the shelves.

"Unfortunately yes." Peggy said. "Hey guys, come here."

They all looked disappointed by having to stop their plundering but they complied anyway, trudging up to her. Ruth sidled up to her, slipping her hand into Peggy's.

"These are my younger siblings." Peggy introduced, pointing to each of them and reciting their names.

"Who's this?" Karen asked, eyeing up Curly. "Is he your boyfriend?"

"Michael's her boyfriend." Ruth said.

"She broke up with Michael." Mikey said.

"Yes I did, and no this is not my boyfriend." Peggy clarified. "This is Curly, we go to school together."

"Curly, the one you think is cute?" Ruth asked.

"What?" Peggy deadpanned.

"Mom told Dad you thought Curly was cute." Mikey explained. His tone sounded helpful but what he was saying was far from it. "And that he likes you."

In that moment Peggy wanted nothing more than for the ground to swallow her whole or for her to melt into a puddle, anything to get her out of the situation. When she'd admitted that to her mother she hardly thought it would get back to Curly, much less via her own siblings.

"Mom doesn't know what she's talking about." Peggy spluttered. "Now, go and get the candies."

Peggy could feel her face burning as she turned back to a gleeful Curly. "I'm just gonna go die of embarrassment." She announced, turning the cart around and walking out of the aisle.

"It ain't that embarrassing." Curly said, jogging up to her side. "I already knew you thought I was hot."

"Ah, the word was cute, and I don't think it fits you." Peggy said.

"You sure?"

"Pretty sure. 100% in fact."

"I don't believe you."

"Well," she said, flustered. "It doesn't really matter if you don't believe me because it's the truth."

It was all too easy to fall back into playful banter with Curly. Just like that night hadn't happened, which was what she wanted. And he evidently wanted that as well. Probably too embarrassed to admit he'd run to _her_ for comfort.

Curly chuckled. "Shopping for Halloween?"

"Yeah, we're getting the candy for trick-or-treaters." She said, glad the conversation had moved on. "You?"

"Ain't no trick-or-treaters in my neighbourhood." He scoffed. "Actually, I was gonna swipe some candy 'fore you interrupted."

"Curly," she admonished. "You shouldn't steal things."

"Shit, with you skipping class now I wouldn't be surprised if you'd stolen something."

"That was a one-time thing." She claimed. "But thanks for showing me your secret hide-out."

"Wouldn't want you to get caught, now would I." Curly said.

"I had it all planned out," She said. "If I got caught, I was going to say I felt sick and went outside to throw up."

"You planned what you were gonna say?" Curly asked, not even trying to hide his laughter.

"Of course." She said. "I'm a terrible liar, I'd have just told them the truth."

"So I shouldn't take you along to a bank robbery?"

"Defintely not."

Despite having left the candy aisle behind Curly kept walking with her. She hoped she had discouraged him from committing a crime and making her complicit, but she wouldn't put it past him to steal the candy anyway. As they passed one of the Halloween displays of creepy masks Peggy let out a shudder.

"What?" Curly asked.

"I hate those masks." Peggy told him.

"They ain't that scary." He scoffed.

"No, there's a story behind this irrational fear." Peggy said. "So, we went camping on Halloween once with my uncle, my older sister and me, when I was nine." She explained. "And after we went bed, we started hearing these noises outside our tent. Then my uncle stuck his head through the flap wearing one of those masks, scared the bejesus outta me, think I almost wet myself."

Curly broke out into loud cackles, causing her to give him a wide-eyed look. She'd heard him chuckle and chortle, but evidently she'd never properly entertained him before. Now she wished she had, it made him look younger and more carefree, not to mention it was quite entertaining.

"Careful, if you laugh any harder you might wet yourself." Peggy warned, giving him a playful shove.

"Remind me to get one of those masks."

"Don't you dare."

"I might." He said. "Where'd you go camping."

"Up in Osage Hills." She answered. "We still go there in summer."

"Ain't never been camping." Curly mused. "It any good?"

"I like it, but it's not for everyone." She said. "My dad used to go there when he was a kid, that's why we go there. My mom's not a fan, but she suffers through it for him."

Curly nodded in response. "I gotta get outta here, but I'll see ya."

"Yeah." Peggy replied.

Peggy watched him walk away, part of her wondering if he had ended up stealing anything after all, the other part too thankful that the situation had unfolded as it had. She wasn't sure what she would have done if he'd wanted to talk about what happened. It was bad enough he know thought she thought he was cute. She wanted to kill her siblings for letting that slip, and if they weren't in public they'd probably already be dead.

When she returned to the candy aisle they each had armfulls of packets, which they promptly unloaded into the cart.

"Where'd Curly go?" Ruth asked.

"Home."

"Our home?" Mikey asked.

"His home." Peggy said. "Why would he go to our house?"

Mikey shrugged in response.

Peggy glanced into the cart to assess their choices. "Alright, who got the single lollipop?" She asked.

"I did." Karen said.

"For who?"

"Myself."

"I didn't say you could get candy for yourself." Peggy said, raising her eyebrows at her sister.

"You never said we couldn't." Karen countered.

Peggy sighed. "Fine, you all get one lollipop but if I find anything extra they'll be big trouble."

Mikey was the only one who listened to her warning, the others scrambling to grab as many extra things as they could.

"Here you go, Peggy." He said, handing her a chocolate bar. "Your favourite, right?"

"Yeah, it is, thanks buddy." She replied, reaching out to muss up his hair. Mikey pulled away, but smiled.

"Alright, you rascals." She announced. "Let's get outta here."


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Fifteen**

 _October 1968_

Michael was still ignoring her at school, not that she even wanted to talk to him after the last conversation they had. She hadn't told anyone about what he said. Telling her mom would only cause issues in her friendships. She could've told her friends, but for some reason she hesitated. If they knew there was a chance it could spread, and if Curly somehow found out there's no way his reaction would be good. She'd already caused Michael enough pain, she didn't need to make things worse.

The hallway was filled with people milling around, getting their books from their lockers and chatting with their friends. Peggy's eyes scanned the crowd like she was looking for someone, though she didn't know who.

"You guys going to Philip's party tonight?" Jennifer asked.

"There's no way I could get out of it." Lori said. "My aunt thinks if I'm there Philip'll be on his best behaviour."

"But you're the one more likely to be the bad influence than your cousin." Jane pointed out.

"Exactly." Lori agreed. "You guys have to come."

"I'm going to a dinner with my parents." Jennifer said, to no one's surprise. She was always going to dinners, and soirées, and country club lunches. Peggy thought that one day she'd regret rushing into adulthood instead of enjoying her adolescence.

Before Peggy could reply, the lockers beside her banged causing her to jump, turning to find a gleefully grinning Curly. It was the first time she'd seen him since the revelation of her finding him attractive and she was really hoping he didn't bring it up in front of her friends. It was embarrassing enough in front of her siblings, and they'd all forgotten about it. She knew he wasn't going to bring up their moment after the rumble, so at least those concerns were assuaged.

"Hey, Jones." He greeted. "Hey, Lori."

"Hey." Lori replied. "You coming to Philip's party?"

"Don't know." Curly shrugged. "I might."

"You should. We're all going." Lori said. "Well, almost all of us."

"Ain't you going?" Curly asked Peggy.

"I'm going." She said. "Jennifer's the one who's not going."

"Might see you there then."

Curly pushed himself off of the lockers, winking at Lori before sauntering off. Jennifer rolled her eyes, not at all charmed by the display, unlike Lori, who looked absolutely thrilled. A part of Peggy wanted to roll her own eyes at her friends eagerness. It wasn't as if Curly had given her his undivided attention, and Peggy doubted the sincerity of Lori's interest in him. If Peggy knew her friend, then Curly was nothing more than a passing fancy, a fickle attraction that would dissipate as quickly as it appeared.

"He just thinks he's all that." Jennifer said.

"He doesn't." Peggy said. "He just acts like that."

"Well he can act like that all he wants cause I think it's attractive." Lori said. "So you're coming then, Peg?"

"If Vickie'll babysit then I'll come."

"Call me when you know." Jane told her. "I'll take you two."

Once the bell rang the students all dispersed from the hallway, filing into the classrooms. Peggy was glad that she'd agreed to go at the beginning of the day since it gave her the rest of school to figure out how to cajole her sister in babysitting their siblings instead of her. A year ago she wouldn't have had to worry, but recently something had changed with Vickie. She was going out more often, and was vague about exactly what she was doing, and who with. Their mother had absolute trust in them so she was yet to question the change in behaviour, but Peggy wasn't so gullible.

For once Vickie came straight home from school, and Peggy didn't know whether she should be thankful for that or not.

"Hey, Vickie, I need to ask a favour." Peggy said. "I know that we were meant to babysit together tonight, but Lori's cousin's throwing a party and she wants me to come."

"So?"

"So," Peggy said. "I'm asking you to babysit alone tonight."

"I can't." Vickie replied. "I'm going to a party."

"Whose?"

"Doesn't matter." Vickie said. "You'll have to babysit alone."

"You didn't tell me you were going to a party."

"Neither did you."

"I didn't know I was until today."

"Well tough luck."

It was typical of Vickie to be so self-centred. Peggy had spent all day fretting over how to broach the subject, and such consideration hadn't even occurred to Vickie.

"Girls." Their mother interrupted. "What's going on?"

"We both want to go to a party tonight." Peggy said.

"Can't they just look after themselves?" Vickie asked.

"Mikey's only twelve, he can't look after himself let alone Karen and Ruth." Peggy said. "One of us has to stay."

"Vickie, you can't stay in for one night?" Suzanne said. "You go out all the time. Peggy never gets to go out."

"That's not my fault." Vickie said, indignantly. "I shouldn't be punished for it."

"Then think of it as practice for when she goes off to college." Suzanne said. "So its settled. Peggy can go, and you'll stay."

"This is so unfair." Vickie spat, and Peggy was surprised she didn't stamp her foot before she stormed off to her room.

Her mother was practically beaming at her, no doubt delighted by the prospect of helping her getting ready. Suzanne revelled in that sought of thing, so much that when Peggy was younger she had sometimes felt more like her mother's doll than her daughter. Still, she acquiesced to her mother's wishes.

Curly hadn't been planning on going to the party until Peggy had brought it up. It wasn't really his crowd, and he was sure Buck's would've been more fun, not to mention the latter would've offered him a better chance at getting laid. But who would turn down free alcohol.

Besides, it would finally give him the chance to get Peggy alone. Neither of them had said anything about what happened after the rumble, but that didn't mean he'd stopped thinking about it. By now he was certain that he wanted to kiss her, as soon as possible, so he could stop thinking about her.

By the time he got there the party must've been going on for awhile, given a number of people were already stumbling around drunk. He got a few strange looks as he wandered through the crowd, probably wondering what a greaser like him was doing at a party like this. The tensions between their two groups had eased over the years, but that didn't mean anybody was likely to forget where he came from.

He scanned the crowd for Peggy, and when he turned around to see her moving to stand beside him he wondered if maybe she'd been looking for him too.

"You're late." She told him. "The party started three and a half hours ago."

"I'm here."

"Punctuality is a virtue."

"I ain't virtuous."

"Guess not." She said, shaking her head at him but smiling nonetheless. "You didn't dress up."

"So? I don't think that's dressing up." He said, pointing to the cat ears on her head, the only thing about her appearance that vaguely resembled a costume.

"I didn't have time to get a good costume." She explained, straightening the headband. "This was all we had at home that wasn't kiddish."

"Looks cute." He told her. "So you weren't gonna come after all?"

"No, I wasn't." She admitted. "But then I had to prove you wrong."

"Ain't you a competitive one." He noted. "Don't think that's very virtuous."

"Guess I'm not as virtuous as you think."

It probably wasn't meant to be as flirtatious as it sounded, but Curly couldn't help but grinning at all the unintentional implications. With the break in conversation, he finally took in her full appearance. She was more done up than usual, with her make-up and her hair out the way he liked it.

Her thigh length dress showed off her long legs, and he was reminded of how good they'd felt pressed against him, and how much he wanted to run his hands over them again. If he had his way he wouldn't stop at her legs, he'd run his hands over her whole damn body, but he'd take a kiss if that was all he could get.

"Wanna dance?" He asked, as the song ended and another, slower one, began.

Peggy's eyes darted around the room, searching for some way out. When she didn't find one she conceded, placing her hand in his outstretched one. Curly wasted no time pulling her on to the dance floor, settling his own hands at her waist, holding her close enough that she had no choice but to wrap her arms around his neck.

Having Curly so close, with them swaying together to the music, it was impossible for her not to think about that night. As much as she'd tried to avoid the memory it had a habit of resurfacing. All of this was against her better judgment. Dancing with him, letting him hold her against himself, liking the feeling of his hands and the way the heat from them burned through her dress.

This was the first time she'd ever slow danced properly with someone, with full body contact. Every other time was at a school dance or family event, where a certain physical distance was necessitated. She was finding that she preferred this way of dancing.

"Have you been studying for your Math test?" She asked, and Curly chuckled softly into her ear.

"You really wanna talk about school right now?"

"What do you wanna talk about then?"

"Why we gotta talk?"

"Okay." She conceded. In other circumstances she may have been concerned about him not wanting to talk, but in her current situation she was hardly worrying about rejection.

Resting her cheek on his shoulder, she was lulled into a state of complacency by his thumbs rubbing circles into her sides, sending a shiver up her spine despite the body heat they were currently sharing. None of this was appropriate. She'd only broken up with her boyfriend a few weeks ago, and here she was allowing the instigator of the break up to feel her up. It wasn't like Curly even liked her in that way, he was having his fun, and she'd be the one that had to deal with the fallout.

And yet, she didn't push him away, she didn't want to.

When the song came to an end, somewhat reluctantly, she lifted her head up. Curly was watching her with an indecipherable look in his eyes, strange for someone whose emotions were usually on full display for all to see. She'd planned on stepping back, on retreating to safety away from Curly and the confusion he was causing. But she didn't, she couldn't. She was glued to the ground by his gaze, roaming over her face, hesitating on her lips.

If it was anyone else she would've thought he wanted to kiss her, but this was Curly, he didn't like her like that.

"Peggy, you need to..." Lori called out, trailing off no doubt when she saw just how close the two of them were pressed together. "Oh."

Practically jumping out of his arms, she blushed furiously at having been caught in even a slightly compromising position with Curly. Lori's eyes were flicking between them, somewhat dejectedly.

"Ah, you have to come quick." Lori said. "It's your sister."

Glancing back at Curly, who was watching her intently, she thought to offer some apology but she didn't know what to say, so instead she said nothing and ran off with Lori. Admittedly, it wasn't the best solution, but all she could think about was all the possible horrible situations Vickie could've gotten herself into.

She followed Lori into the backyard where Jane was crouching beside a kneeling Vickie. As she got closer she could smell the alcohol, and she had a good feeling about who the pile of vomit a few feet away from them belonged to. Ordinarily she may have been sympathetic to her sister's drunk state, but given the circumstances she was nothing short of furious.

"Vickie, get up." She ordered. "Now!"

With Jane's assistance, Vickie managed to get back on to her feet, watching her sister with a mix of trepidation and fear.

"What're you doing here?" Peggy demanded. "No, I know what you're doing here, the more important question is why you're not at home?"

"Stop shouting, Peg." Vickie said. "You're too loud."

"I'll be as loud as I damn well want to." She snapped. "Who's looking after our siblings?"

"They're fine." Vickie mumbled, which only confirmed what Peggy already knew.

"We're going home."

Grabbing on to her sister's arm, she all but dragged her out of there, ignoring all of her objections. Of course Vickie would go and do something so selfish, so irresponsible, not to mention ruining Peggy's night. It was things like this that made Peggy nervous about going to college next year. With her gone, who would be the responsible one in the family.

Peggy roughly shoved her still protesting sister into the back of the car. Lori was more sympathetic, giving Vickie a comforting smile as she handed her a plastic bag in case of anymore accidents.

"I can drop her home and come back." Peggy offered.

"Nah, I was gonna leave soon anyway." Jane said, turning to Lori. "You're staying here overnight right?"

Lori nodded in response, and Jane walked around to the drivers side and got into the car, leaving only Peggy outside. She wanted to say something, to assure Lori that she wasn't trying to encroach on her territory with Curly, but she couldn't find the right words.

"Sorry for interrupting back there." Lori said, looking almost sheepish.

"You weren't interrupting anything." Peggy said. "We were just dancing."

Even to her it sounded like one hell of an understatement. Whatever it was that had just passed between them was nowhere near as simple as that, but she couldn't admit that they'd almost shared a moment, that maybe they'd been very close to kissing. She couldn't do that to her friend. Lori hadn't officially placed dibs on Curly, but she'd made her interest clear. It would be wrong for Peggy to ruin that, even if she had been there first.

At least she could thank her sister for taking her mind off of Curly, considering she had to spend the rest of the night doing damage control. Coming up with the lie that Vickie had a stomach bug, convincing her younger siblings to go along with it, and finally executing the plan when her parents got home. They were none the wiser to the real reason Vickie spent the next day in bed, and Peggy chalked that up to her own abilities at deception.


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Sixteen**

 _November 1968_

Peggy would be lying if she said she enjoyed watching high school football. It was outside in the cold and their team wasn't very good, but her friends wanted to go and who was she to deny them a classic high school experience. There weren't too many of them left, and they had to savour them as much as they could.

"Tell me again why we come to these games?" Jane asked. "It's freezing tonight and we're losing."

At least she wasn't the only one harbouring a secret desire to leave. Jane was interested in sports about as much as Peggy was interested in quadratic equations.

"It's only half time." Lori said. "They could come back."

"No they won't." Peggy said.

"Well I know why I come," Lori said. "I love me a man in uniform."

"I don't think football uniforms count." Jennifer.

"They do to me." Lori replied. "Ooh, lookie here."

"What?" Peggy asked, following Lori's eyeline down the bleachers to where Curly was climbing the stairs.

She was surprised to see him at the game. Not only was it not at all his scene, but she hadn't seen him at school all day. Of course, that may have been because she was avoiding him, since seeing him would mean admitting they shared a moment the night before and she wasn't ready to do that.

It was bad enough that she let him feel her up, even if only a little bit, the fact that she had actively entertained the idea of kissing him just made it worse. Maybe Vickie's rebelliousness was a blessing in disguise, because Peggy didn't know what would have happened if she hadn't left Curly right then. Actually, she knew exactly what would've happened, and what was worse, she wouldn't have minded it.

Her and Curly had become friends and that was where she wanted to keep things. Anything else would be too confusing right now.

"Hey," Lori called out, waving him over. "Why don't you join us?"

Peggy had half the mind to elbow Lori in the ribs for the invitation. She could hardly avoid Curly when he was sitting with them. She expected him to turn down the offer, but he didn't.

"Here," Peggy said, moving over to make room for him, and Lori gave her a grateful smile.

Curly sat down, nodding to her friends. If he didn't have on his usual grin, she might've said he looked uncomfortable around them. She couldn't figure out why, it wasn't like they were threatening in any way.

"I didn't know you were a football fan." Curly said to her.

"I'm not." Peggy admitted. "No, I'm not a fanatic for football."

"Huh?"

"That's where fan comes from." She said. "People started using it in the late 19th century for supporters of sports."

"Well ain't you just full of knowledge." Curly said. "Don't know why I bother with school when I could just get you to teach me it all."

"Thanks." She said, smiling back at him. "Are you a football fan?"

"Not really." Curly said. "Came with Jimmy, to drink, 'cept his girlfriend chucked a fit about something so now they're off arguing."

"What about?"

Curly shrugged. "Who knows with you chicks?"

"Us chicks are not unreasonable." Peggy said. "She probably has a completely legitimate reason to be angry."

"You're always right too, ain't ya?"

"Of course we are." She replied. "Sorry that you have to settle for us as company."

"I ain't settling." He said, tilting his head down towards her, with that handsome grin of his that had her stomach twisting in knots.

She had to get it together or else she'd be letting him sweep her off her feet, as much as Curly could. Though, it was always hard when he gave her that look, it was so roguish and endearing she thought she might just let him do whatever he wanted.

"That's nice to hear."

Curly frowned slightly, but she quickly turned back to the game before he could ask why she was acting so stiff around him. She couldn't help it, anything else was veering into the territory of too intimate and she wanted to stay a far away from that area as possible.

A cold wind brushed over them and Peggy pulled her coat tighter around her, rubbing her bare hands together to try and create some warmth.

"You cold?" Curly asked.

"Only my hands." She said. "I forgot my gloves."

Reaching over Curly laid his hand on top of hers. His skin was unusually warm considering he wasn't wearing any gloves himself, and she tried to convince herself that it was the sudden warmth that had her almost jumping out of her skin. Of course, that didn't explain the racing pulse.

"Shit, your hands are cold."

"And yours are freakishly warm."

"I run hot." He replied, winking at her.

"I bet."

Despite having adequately assessed the temperature of her hands, he made no move to remove his. In fact, he rather made himself comfortable in the position of semi-holding her hand, returning to watching the game as if this was something normal. Pulling away would have been the smart thing to do, but she didn't want to be rude, and his hand was warm.

Peggy was almost disappointed when he finally let go. By the frown on his face, her first thought was that she had done something wrong, but then she followed his gaze down to the field. He was watching the sidelines, where a dark-haired cheerleader was looking rather distraught.

"I'll be back." He muttered, more to Peggy than anyone else, before getting up.

She watched his retreating figure with some relief that there would be distance between them, but there was also a sense of despondency because of said distance. Not to mention the fact he was rushing off to comfort another girl. Peggy didn't have anything against Rose Prescott, but in that moment she was hardly positively disposed towards her.

Once Curly was out of earshot, Lori leaned over to her. "Having fun flirting?"

"We're not flirting." Peggy objected. "We're just chatting. I sat him next to you so you could talk to him."

"It's not me he wants to talk to." Lori said. "You've got all his attention."

"No I haven't."

"Peg," Lori said. "Since he sat down, all he's done is chat you up. He likes you. Don't know if he knows it yet, but he does."

Ordinarily she would've given more weight to a third party's observation, but she was still hung up on being ditched. Curly said he'd be back but who knew. Maybe he didn't like her after all and she really was nothing more than a bit of fun to him. It shouldn't have mattered to her, but it did. She couldn't just be a joke to him.

"Who was he chasing after?" Jane asked.

"Rose." Peggy said.

"Rose Prescott?"

"Yeah."

"Didn't you kiss her boyfriend?" Jennifer asked.

"Ex-boyfriend." Peggy clarified. "But yes."

Her history with Rose probably wasn't doing her imagination any good. If she were honest, they didn't have much of a history, they'd never really spoken, and, aside from Peggy kissing her boyfriend while they were broken up, hadn't had any interactions. Not that it would stop her from wondering if this were all an elaborate ploy to get back at her.

It almost certainly wasn't, but if it was it would be one of the most dramatic things to happen to her. Seemingly, the drama in her life had magnified tenfold by Curly's mere introduction to it. She still couldn't decide if that was a good thing or not.

She didn't want to admit that she sat on edge waiting for him to come back, or that she kept track of how long he'd been gone for. It was too embarrassing. So when he did come back, she tried to play it as cool as possible.

"Where'd you go?" Peggy asked, once Curly had sat down, this time on the other side of her.

"Had to help someone." He said. "My brother's girlfriend."

Peggy almost sighed in relief, but that would've been way too obvious. Instead she went for mild curiousity, which wasn't a complete lie, she really did want to know how his brother managed to get a girlfriend.

"Your brother has girlfriend?"

"Well no, but yeah."

"That doesn't make any sense."

"They're not together," Curly explained. "But they wanna be."

"If they want to be together why aren't they together?" She asked.

"Cause not everyone's as smart as you."

"Thanks." She said, blushing slightly. "What happened to your jacket?"

"Gave it to her."

"Aren't you cold?"

Curly shrugged. "I run hot, remember."

"I remember."

The game ended in an unsurprising loss for their school's team, it would've been a miracle for it to even be a draw. They followed the dispersing crowd out of the stands, the others said goodbye and walked towards their car, leaving Peggy and Curly standing in the parking lot.

"You need a ride?" Curly asked, shoving his hands into his pockets and rolling on his feet.

"Ah, no thanks, I drove here, actually." She said. "I do have to go and find my sister though."

"Guess I'll see ya at tutoring then."

"Yeah." Peggy nodded, watching him walk away for a moment before scanning through the crowd for her sister.

After ten minutes of searching and no luck, Peggy knew something was up. She returned to the stands only to find them empty, and with most of the crowd gone she wasn't sure where else to look. The school was a big place, and who knew where Vickie could've gone, or what she was doing. For all Peggy knew she could've been kidnapped, or worse.

Walking down past the toilets she heard voices, none she recognised but it was worth a shot. Turning the corner she stopped dead in her tracks when she saw a group all huddled together sharing a beer and a cigarette, and sure enough, there was her sister.

"Vickie." Peggy called out, stalking up to her.

"What're you doing here Peg?" Vickie asked, walking up to meet her.

"Looking for you." She said. "Freaking out about not being able to find you, actually, not that you would care."

"Don't be so dramatic, I'm fine."

"That's great, because we're leaving." Peggy said, grabbing onto her sister's arm, ignoring her protests as she dragged her towards the parking lot.

"You can't make me get into the car." Vickie pointed out.

"You'll get in if you don't want to hitchhike home." She replied. "Or have Mom and Dad find out what you were doing."

The threat of snitching was enough to get Vickie into the car, though the strong-arming left her in a foul mood, and left an even fouler taste in Peggy's mouth. She didn't like making threats to get what she wanted, but when what she wanted was her sister's safety, she could make the necessary sacrifice.

"You know you're not that good." Vickie spat out, as Peggy pulled out of the carpark.

"What?"

"You, you act like you're this goody toe shoes but you're not." Vickie said. "You should get off your high horse sometime."

"I'm not the one getting drunk and smoking." Peggy pointed out.

"No, you're the one getting detention." Vickie said. "What, thought I wouldn't hear about it."

"That was one time, and it wasn't even my fault." She said. "Is that what this is about? Trying to differentiate yourself from me or something?"

"No!"

"Then what? Because I don't understand." She said. "I don't understand why you're doing this."

Vickie didn't have an answer for that. Instead she crossed her arms, looking sullenly out of the window. If she had it her way they wouldn't speak for the rest of the drive, but Peggy wanted to sort this out while Vickie couldn't escape her questions.

"Are you angry about me going off to college?" Peggy asked. "Because I was angry when Anna left."

It was the first time she had ever said that out loud. She'd barely been able to admit it to herself let alone admit it to anyone else. Resenting her sister felt wrong in so many ways, especially when it was for something that was nothing more than the natural progression of life.

"You were?"

"Yeah." She admitted. "I was pissed at her for leaving us, for leaving me to be the oldest sibling and have to take all that on."

"Were you pissed when she didn't come back after college?" Vickie asked. The malice was gone from her voice, replaced with a mix of sympathy and curiosity.

Peggy shrugged. "By then I was used to the responsibility. Don't think I would've taken it well if she'd come home and tried to take it back."

"I think you did a better job."

The judgment filled Peggy with equal amounts of pride and guilt. It made her feel accomplished, but it also felt like she was betraying Anna if she accepted the praise. She shifted in the seat, but said nothing. Vickie had only just calmed down, she didn't want to rock the boat by arguing with her.

"Sorry for grabbing you."

"Sorry for ditching you."

* * *

 **NOTE: If you want to see the conversation between Curly and Rose check out chapter fourty two of Ain't No Sunshine.**


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Seventeen**

 _November 1968_

Tutoring sessions with Peggy hadn't turned out to be as painful as Curly had thought they would be, but this one was dragging on. He wanted it to end so he could finally get her alone. He'd been trying for damn near a week, and so far he'd had to settle for that pathetic hand holding at the football game and their dance at Halloween. It had never been this hard to kiss a girl, maybe that was why he kept trying when there were much easier sources, he now had something to prove.

He was trying to flirt with her as much as he could, but during tutoring she always managed to shut down his flirting to try and get him to actually do his work, and he did because he liked the look of triumph on her face when he actually did something. It wasn't like Tim ever looked at him with pride, only annoyance or anger. Not that he needed her to be proud of him or anything, he wasn't a sap, but it defintely didn't feel bad.

"You know," Peggy said, looking over a practice exam for history he'd completed. "If you do this well in the actual exam, you might actually get a C average, maybe even a B minus."

Curly snorted. "That'll be a miracle."

"You can do it." She said. "You just have to apply yourself."

"You saying I ain't been applying myself?"

"Have you?" She asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Nah." He admitted. "Guess you just bring out the best in me."

"Glad to hear it." She said, handing him back the paper, glancing up at the clock. "Looks like that's time."

 _Thank fucking Christ_ , he thought. He wasn't ready to leave her but the learning he was done with.

"You doing anything now?" He asked, casually.

"No. Why?"

"Come with me to The Dingo." He said. "Figure I owe you a milkshake."

Peggy's eyes went wide, and when she didn't immediately reply he was about to brush it off as nothing. But then she spoke.

"Okay." She said, her voice quiet and unsure.

He grinned widely at her, and that seemed to make her feel better. He wasn't sure why she was looking so nervous, all he'd offered was a milkshake. Sure, he wanted more but she didn't know that. For all she knew he genuinely wanted to buy her a milkshake as a thank you.

Leading her into the parking lot, he briefly wondered if he should open the car door for her but that was a stupid idea. It wasn't like this was a date or anything, and even if it was he still wouldn't do it.

"D'you ever clean your car?" She asked, as he pulled out of the parking lot.

"Sometimes." Curly shrugged. "Why? Does it bother you?"

"Yes." She admitted, and he chuckled. Any other girl would've lied to impress him, but not Peggy.

"We ain't all crazy 'bout organisation like you."

"I'm not crazy about it." She protested.

"Your notes are in a binder with colour coded tabs." He pointed out. "You gotta admit, that's a little nuts."

"It's efficient."

"Then why don't anybody else do it?" He asked. "Are you just one of a kind?"

"Maybe." She huffed, folding her arms. "It's not that crazy. Other people do it too."

Curly grinned. "Whatever you say."

He could've sworn he saw her side-eyeing him in response, annoyed that she'd lost the argument. Reaching his arm across the back of the seat, his brushed his fingers against her hair. It was out, the way he liked it, hanging over her shoulders. He thought about running his hands through it but then thought better. He didn't need her thinking this was anything serious.

Peggy didn't move away from him, just made a point of looking out of the window. He hoped she was thinking about the last time she was in his car because he certainly was. He smirked to himself when she leant her head back, closer to his fingers that were still stroking her hair. Yeah, she was thinking about that night.

When they got out of the car he had half a mind to sling an arm over her shoulder, but he didn't. The Dingo wasn't all that full. Most of the people that had come after school had already left, probably to find some other piece of action. Curly was glad that he didn't recognise any of the people there, he didn't want to run into anyone. It wasn't that he was ashamed of being with Peggy, he just didn't want to be interrupted.

The waitress came up to their table almost immediately after they sat down. "What can I get for you?" She asked, not waiting for them to look at the menu.

"Uh, I'll have a strawberry milkshake, please." Peggy said.

"A coke." Curly added. The waitress jotted the order down before shuffling away.

"No milkshake?" Peggy asked.

"Said I'd buy you one, didn't say I wanted one." He replied. "You ever been here before?"

"Ah, no."

Curly raised his eyebrows at her. "Too rough for you?"

"No, I've just never been here." She said. "It's actually the perfect amount of roughness. Enough to feel fun but not too rough that I think I'm gonna be murdered."

"Didn't know rough was what you liked?" He smirked.

Peggy opened her mouth to speak but apparently couldn't think of anything to say. She shook her head at him, disapprovingly, but he could see a slight smile. It was a good thing she thought he was funny or else she would've told him to hit the road a long time ago.

"Can I ask you something?" She said.

"Shoot."

"Why do you get into fights?"

Curly shrugged. "Always seems like a good idea at the time, I guess."

There wasn't much else too it. He'd been fighting practically his whole life, he'd never given much thought to why he did it, other than wanting to.

"How does getting punched seem like a good idea?" She asked.

There wasn't any judgment in her question, she was just genuinely curious. That was something he'd had to get used to with Peggy, she didn't ask questions because she was nosy but because she just genuinely fucking cared about other people. He liked that about her.

"It doesn't." He admitted, leaning forward. "But punching someone else does."

"But doesn't it hurt?" She asked. "Cause I heard that it hurts to punch people. I mean, it has to, otherwise you wouldn't end up with cuts and bruises on your knuckles."

"Yeah, it hurts, but it ain't so bad if you know how." He explained. "I'm guessing you don't know how."

"No." She said. "I've never had the need."

"I could teach you." He offered. "Case you ever have the need."

Curly winked at her and she blushed. He'd love to teach her to punch, give him an excuse for more touching.

"Oh, how the tables have turned." She said, waving her finger at him. "And now the pupil becomes the teacher. Feel good?"

"Little bit." He chuckled. "Your folks gonna be worried you didn't come home?"

He wouldn't have even thought about asking someone from his neighbourhood that question. He could be gone a month and his parents would probably barely even notice.

"So long as I make it home before curfew they won't mind. Though, they might be annoyed if I miss dinner since Great Uncle Milton's coming over." She said, unenthusiastically.

"You don't like Great Uncle Milton?"

"I do, it's just, he has this glass eye, and he always has spares with him so he likes to play pranks with them." She explained. "Last Thanksgiving he put it in the turkey."

"In the turkey?" He laughed.

"Yeah." She said. "When I was a kid he put it in my soup. Went to take a spoonful and there it was, scarred me for life."

"I like him already."

"It's funny so long as it's not happening to you." She conceded. "But he's the only family my dad has, so I put up with the pranks."

"Poor you." He teased. "Must be tough."

Peggy sighed dramatically, leaning forward. "I make do." She said, barely keeping her face straight before she let out a giggle.

Even though he'd been much closer to her than this he'd never really looked at her face, not properly at least. He'd never noticed the freckles scattered across her nose, or the exact colour of her eyes. Peggy blushed under his gaze, and his grin widened. He was close enough that kissing her would've been easy, but then the waitress just had to interrupt them.

"Here you go." She said, setting down their drinks. "Enjoy."

By the time she'd left Peggy had already leant back and he'd missed another chance. Usually acting too quickly was what got him into trouble, but now he couldn't act quick enough.

"So," Peggy said, after slurping up her drink. "Do you really prefer blondes?"

He didn't remember saying he did but he wasn't about to pass up the opportunity to flirt some more.

"Gentlemen do, don't ya know." He said, grinning slyly at her.

"I didn't, but at least now I can take comfort in knowing that only gentlemen will be attracted to me."

"You'll have a boring life then." He scoffed. "Gentlemen ain't no fun."

"Duly noted." She said. "You know, gentleman originally meant an untitled man from a good family, but the upsurgance of the middle class in the 19th century meant the term changed to be based on behaviour, so that anyone that acted a certain way was a gentlemen, and had the right to mingle with good society."

None of it was remotely interesting to him but he liked that she wanted to tell him, so he listened.

"Good thing I don't wanna mingle with snobs with sticks up their asses."

"Well, I don't think you're half as discourteous as you seem to think you are." She said, offering him a small smile, the kind that was too damn good for her to be giving to him. "Do you come here a lot? With your friends, or your family?"

"Come here plenty with my friends." Curly said. "Don't go out much with my family."

"How come?" She asked, before quickly adding, "If you don't mind me asking."

Curly shrugged. "Just don't, never have." He said. "Wouldn't wanna go anywhere with Angela now."

"Why's that?"

"She's always been a pain in the ass, but now's she's pregnant she's even worse." He explained. "Every time I see her she tries to rope me into doing some errand for her."

It didn't annoy him half as much as he was letting on. Maybe a part of him even liked helping Angela out. He just wished she'd come straight out and ask for help rather than conning him into it. It wasn't like she thought he'd actually ever flat out say no.

"And do you do them?"

"Course." He replied. "Her shit-for-brains husband ain't gonna do it, and someone's gotta take care of her."

Peggy smiled at him like she understood exactly how he felt. "We all do what we have to for our family."

"Yeah, I guess." He agreed. "Why'd you wanna tutor anyway? Because you want to teach?"

"Yeah, that was part of it, good practice." She said. "But, I guess I also just liking helping people, making a difference. It sounds stupid out loud."

"It ain't stupid."

"Really?" She asked. "You probably think I'm naive."

"Nah, I mean, maybe a little." He said. "But I dig it."

Anyone else and he would've thought they were being stupid. Helping people didn't get you anywhere, and nothing made enough of a difference to actually make a difference. But she was being so damn genuine that he couldn't mock her for it. The only thing he could think about was how much he wanted to kiss her.

By the time they left The Dingo it was dark out and starting to get cold. They hadn't even spent that long there, but it was almost winter and the sun was going down earlier each day. As he drove through the streets he tapped his fingers against his thighs, wondering when was the best time to make his move.

"Are you okay?" Peggy asked.

"Huh?"

"You're tapping, you only do that when you're nervous." She pointed out. "And the polite term is pardon."

Curly rolled his eyes at the correction, but stopped tapping. He'd almost pulled over at least half a dozen times before he reached her house, and every time he regretted not doing it. The lights were on inside, and he figured she wouldn't waste anymore time chatting. He flicked off the ignition, and out of the corner of his eye he saw Peggy frown in confusion.

"Hey, Peg." He said, reaching his arm across the seat to rest his hand against the back of her head.

Peggy didn't reply. Her eyes were wide and questioning, as they travelled up his arms to stop at his face. For a moment, he was frozen by her watchful gaze, searching his face for answers. He was quick moving in, but hesistated, gently brushing his lips against hers before he actually pressed them to hers in an unhurried kiss. Peggy's response was just as slow, her lips were soft and gentle but a little unsure. He moved his hand to cup her face, brushing his thumb over her cheek.

Pulling back slightly, he paused to look at her. He was vaguely aware of the coldness of the car, but far more concerned with those curious eyes of hers, watching him intently, like she was trying to figure out a really difficult puzzle.

"Peggy." He whispered, like her name was something sacred, like he was making some sort of promise.

Tilting his head back to the side he was about to move in again when she grabbed onto his jacket, tugging him down towards her. There was no hesitancy in this kiss. Peggy latched an arm around his neck, tangling her fingers in his hair. He slipped his free hand around her waist to pull her flush against him, but she could never get close enough for his liking. Her free hand slipped under his shirt to trail her cold fingers over his chest, and he almost shivered.

Their lips were hungry, so were their hands, and just about everything else. He'd waited weeks that felt like years and now he was kissing her like a desperate man, eager for more, and more, and more.

"Damn, baby," he chuckled, his fingers trailing over her neck and down towards her chest, her heart thudding against his hot skin.

They were both breathing heavily when she broke the kiss off. He smiled down at her, half in a daze and wanting nothing more than to keep kissing her. Peggy was frowning, looking anywhere but at him. This wasn't how he wanted it to be. She wasn't supposed to look so damn confused. He'd made it pretty clear what he wanted, and she'd certainly acted like she wanted that too.

"You okay?" He asked, his thumb absentmindedly brushing over her collarbone.

"Thanks for the milkshake." She said, not even glancing at him as she grabbed her bag and scrambled out of the car.

Peggy didn't look back at him as she walked up to the house, leaving Curly wondering what the fuck he'd done wrong.


	18. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Eighteen**

 _November 1968_

Curly had given her plenty of sleepless nights over the past two weeks but last night took the cake. Everything after the kiss was a blur, except for her lying in bed replaying it over in her mind. She'd been kissed before but not like that. Not in a way that had left her weak in the knees and aching for more.

So what did she do, she'd scampered away and completely ruined the moment, and now he probably hated her guts.

It was the smart thing to do, because kissing Curly was the farthest thing from sensible. It would only make things complicated and messy. Or, at least more complicated and messier than they already were. No, it was for the best that she put a stop to her feelings now before they could grow beyond attraction to something serious.

Of course, that didn't stop her from feeling a little dejected when Curly completely ignored her at school. Because she didn't think glares counted as attention, least not in the positive sense.

"Did you and Curly have a fight or something?" Jane asked, as they all sat down in the cafeteria for lunch. "Cause he looks mighty angry at you."

"No, we didn't have a fight." Peggy said, her face crestfallen. "He, he kissed me."

"When? Where?" Lori asked.

"Yesterday, in the car."

"And what did you do?" Lori asked.

"I said thanks for the milkshake and practically ran away."

It didn't sound any better out loud than it did in her head.

"Well, no wonder he's ignoring you." Jane said. "You've embarrassed him. You'll be lucky if he ever speaks to you again."

"What do you mean milkshake?" Jennifer asked. "And how did you end up in his car?"

"Well, after tutoring he asked me to come with him to get a milkshake." Peggy explained. "And then he dropped me home, and that's when he kissed me."

"So, he took you on a date and then he kissed you." Jane summarised. "Why did you freak out?"

"It wasn't a date." She protested. "At least, I don't think it was."

It couldn't have been a date. Sure, that would explain the kissing and touching, but he'd never said anything about a date. She had been nervous about being alone with him since they'd almost kissed twice, and he had paid for her drink. But none of that meant anything if he hadn't actually asked her out.

"I told you he liked you." Lori said. "Don't you like him?"

"I, I don't know."

"Was the kiss good at least?" Jennifer asked.

Good was an understatement, but she only nodded her head in response.

"So, you kissed him back?" Jane asked.

"Yes. Well, I actually initiated the second kiss." She admitted.

"There were two kisses?" Jane replied. "Now I'm really struggling to see why you ran away from him. Is this about Michael."

"Yes. No. I don't know." Peggy said, exasperated. "This is all really confusing. I don't know how I feel about Curly, or kissing him, or the fact I almost kissed him twice before this. And I couldn't figure out how I was feeling with his tongue down my throat, it was very distracting."

"Understandable." Lori agreed. "But it's been a day, and you're still confused."

"I mean, I like Curly, I like being friends with him, I liked kissing him." Peggy admitted. "I just don't know if I want to be with him. I don't even know if that's what he wants."

It was the truth. If she said she hadn't immensely enjoyed the kiss she'd be lying, but she also enjoyed being friends with him. And now that was all ruined, and he probably didn't even want to be around her, and this was just as much his fault as it was hers. He just had to go and kiss her. What made it worse was the fact that he most likely didn't want to date her and all he wanted was to get in her pants. The thought of him using her for sex made her sick to her stomach.

"You two can't avoid each other forever." Jennifer pointed out. "You have to talk to him eventually."

"I want to talk to him, I just don't think he wants to talk to me." She said, her face crestfallen. "I just wish things could go back to the way they were."

"Well, you can't put the cat back in the box now. Best to see things through." Jane advised.

Peggy had never planned to avoid the issue like Curly was. Acting like there isn't a problem doesn't make it go away. No, it's much better to deal with it now instead of letting any resentment fester away. She needed to fix things with Curly, and she needed to do it as soon as possible.

Getting to him wasn't easy. They didn't share any classes, and when she did see him in the hallway he was surrounded by his friends. It was only after school finished that she finally caught him alone, leaning against the building smoking.

He watched her walk up to him with an accusatory stare, like he was funnelling all of his anger into this one look. She hated when he got like this - cold and unfeeling - and hated even more that she caused it. This wasn't how things should be between them.

"Jones." Curly greeted, gruffly, but it was some sort of acknowledgement at least.

"Can we talk?" She asked, absentmindedly pulling at the sleeves of her jacket. "Somewhere in private?"

Curly regarded her suspiciously, like he was weighing up his options, before nodding. She almost breathed a sigh of relief, but that was only step one. She followed him around the side of the building, where no one could see them and hopefully no one could hear them. This wasn't a conversation she wanted to be public.

"Whadda ya want to talk about?" He asked, folding his arms and leaning back against the wall.

"I think you know,"

"No I don't."

Peggy took a deep breath, reminding herself that she needed to stay rational. If he wanted to be immature about this then she had to take the high road.

"I want to talk about what happened yesterday." She said. "And why you're so mad at me."

"I ain't mad." He claimed. "Just confused is all."

"Well, I'm confused too." She said. At least that was something they could agree on, this whole situation was terribly confusing.

"What the fuck do you have to be confused about?" He demanded. "It was pretty damn clear what I was doing."

It really wasn't all that clear, at least not to her and at least not until he was actually kissing her. Maybe he thought he was being obvious, but he wasn't.

"No it wasn't." She retorted. "I mean, was that meant to be a date?"

"No." He quickly replied, defensively.

"Then how was I expected to know you wanted to kiss me." She said, throwing her hands up in frustration. "You...you just, accosted me, in front of my house. Potentially in full view of my entire family.

"Accosted. Have you got fucking amnesia or something?" Curly scoffed. "Cause I sure as shit wasn't kissing myself. You were kissing me right back."

"Yes, well, that's not what we're talking about." She said, her resolve fading.

"Than what the fuck are we talking about?"

"You." She said, her tone more accusatory than intended. "And why you're mad at me."

"I'm mad because you're confusing the shit outta me."

"Ha, so you are mad at me." She said, triumphantly.

"Course I'm fucking mad at you." He said. "I kissed you and you acted like I hit you or something."

"I just needed time to think."

"About what?" He demanded. "Cause it seemed pretty obvious to me that you liked kissing me, so what's the problem?"

"There are plenty of problems." She snapped. "I only just broke up with Michael a few weeks ago, which he blames you for, and if I start dating you right after it's gonna look like we had something going on when we didn't."

"Why do you care what it looks like?" He dropped his arms, turning his body to face her. "Who cares what anybody else thinks?"

Of course Curly would make everything sound so simple when it was anything but. Peggy wasn't like him, she couldn't throw caution to the wind and jump into a relationship she wasn't sure about. She couldn't do the selfish thing that would make her happy if it meant hurting other people, especially people she cared about.

"I care, I care if people think I'm a whore, and even if I don't like Michael that much right now I care about his feelings and I don't want to hurt him." She yelled. "So, yes, dammit, I care what it looks like."

"You just don't wanna be seen with a hood like me." He said, venomously. "What, afraid I'll embarrass you? Think you're too good for me?"

"I never said that." She protested.

"Didn't have to."

After everything, she couldn't believe he thought so little of her. She had thought he knew her pretty well, but clearly she was wrong. She was starting to think she was wrong about a lot of things when it came to Curly Shepard.

"You're just embarrassed." She said. "Your pride's wounded because I didn't fall into your arms and jump into bed with you like you were hoping."

"Oh, you were about ten seconds away from letting me rip your damn clothes off."

"I was not!" She shouted, outraged.

"Were too."

"Was not."

Peggy's hands were balled up into tight fists at her side, and it was all she could do to stop herself from stamping her foot. This was not how she'd planned the conversation would turn out, but Curly could be so damn frustrating sometimes

She'd thought that they were friends, that he at least had some stirrings of care towards her, but he was being so awful. So very different that the boy with the goofy grin that made her laugh. She wanted that boy to come back. She wanted to take back the past two days, take back all the hateful words they threw at each other and replace them with something kinder. But his harsh gaze made it clear that there was no going back.

"You've ruined everything, you know that right?" She said, her voice shaky as she backed away from him.

Curly called out after her but she ignored him. She didn't need an apology if it was only because she'd made him feel guilty. The parking lot had emptied out somewhat and for that she was glad, she was having enough trouble pushing down the tears as it was.

Because as much as her anger didn't want to let her admit it, she really wished things hadn't ended the way they did.


	19. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Nineteen**

 _November 1968_

A week later, her and Curly were yet to speak single word to each other, or even acknowledge each other's existence. Him ignoring her hurt, and made her want to ignore him right back just to prove that she didn't care. But she did. She cared very much about Curly not wanting to talk to her, especially when she wanted to talk to him. As much as she wanted to pretend otherwise, giving him the cold shoulder was not easy.

She found herself more aware of his presence now that she was pretending he didn't exist. Somehow she always managed to find him. It wasn't like she was trying to, her eyes just seemed to drift towards him without her intending them to. The worst part was that she was starting to think he was realising how often he caught her attention.

He was sitting across the cafetaria with his friends, Sarah Davis was sitting beside him, the pair looking awfully cozy. Peggy clenched her jaw as she watched Curly leant in to whisper something in Sarah's ear. He looked up and caught Peggy's gaze. Whether he'd done it on purpose or not she wasn't sure, but she was sure that his decision to shift closer to Sarah was entirely to spite her.

"What did that carrot ever do to you?" Jane asked, pulling Peggy's attention away from Curly and his frustrating behaviour.

"Nothing." She muttered, dropping the fork she had been using to crush a carrot slice.

"You know, there's an easy fix to all this." Lori chimed in. "Just tell him you're sorry and admit you like him."

"I don't have anything to apologise for." She claimed, though she didn't entirely believe it. "Besides, I don't even know if I like him."

"You think he'll show up for tutoring today?" Jennifer asked.

"He better." Peggy muttered, bitterly. "Won't look very good on my college application if he flunks out."

"Bet you've already sent all yours out anyway." Lori said. "To a hundred schools, right?"

"I'm keeping my options open." Peggy protested. "The more colleges I apply to the more likely it is I'll get in to something that best fits my criteria."

"And what criteria is that?" Jane asked.

"A good school with a good education program that isn't too far away."

"Oh, I'm going as far as I can get." Lori said.

"I thought you weren't going to college?" Jennifer asked, but Lori only shrugged in response, and Jennifer turned back to Peggy. "I think that sounds like a smart plan."

"Boring and safe." Lori jibed.

"Just because something's practical doesn't mean it's any less gratifying." Jennifer snapped.

It was a variation on the same argument Jennifer and Lori always had. They were two very different people with two very different outlook on life. As much Peggy occasionally derided Jennifer for her forced practicality, she far more often found herself agreeing with her view than Lori's.

Perhaps that was why she thought Jennifer would best understand her current predicament with Curly. A relationship with Curly would be neither practical nor reasoned. There was no possible future for them, no way she could see him fitting into the plans she'd spent years carefully crafting. Her path in life had already been determined. Go to college and get her degree, start teaching and get married in her early-to-mid twenties and have her first child in her mid-to-late twenties. Where an earth did Curly sit in all of that?

He didn't sit anywhere. And that was why she'd made the right decision when she had rejected him.

Still, that didn't make her feel any better when she spent twenty minutes waiting for him in the library to no avail. After another ten minutes she knew he wasn't going to show, and she was pissed at him for bailing on her like that. Leaving her to look stupid waiting there by herself. Not to mention the fact it was a complete violation of the agreement. He had to go to every session unless he had permission not to, or he wouldn't graduate.

The idea that he wanted to avoid her so much he'd risk being held back almost made her feel bad. Almost.

Scanning the room, she spotted Ponyboy sitting at one of the desks across the room. She'd seen him and Curly around each other enough to know they were buddies, and that he was one of the few of Curly's associates that didn't set her on edge. He was also the only one here.

When she reached his desk he looked up at her with curiousity.

"Hey, Ponyboy." She greeted. "Um, Curly didn't show up for tutoring and I was wondering if you could tell me where he lives. I'm just worried is all."

"I'm sure he's fine." Ponyboy assured her, but pulled out a piece of paper and scribbled down directions anyway. "Probably won't even be there."

Peggy shrugged. "Worth a shot."

"Sure." He said, unconvinced. "You're going to an awful lot of trouble for Curly."

Her first instinct was that he knew about the kiss. Curly had told him and countless others, and now they all thought she was a terrible person. Logic told her this was wrong. There was no way Curly would want everyone to know about his supposed rejection. Not that it stopped her from blushing.

"Oh, well, you know, that's my job." She said. "Wouldn't be a very good tutor if I let him slack off."

"Right." Ponyboy said, smiling slightly. "Well, be careful, it's a rough neighbourhood."

"Will do."

For the entirety of the trip she was steadfast in her objective. Confront Curly and make him see sense. He was jeopardising his graduation just because they'd had a little spat. Well, maybe not little, but it was hardly worth the consequences.

But now that she'd arriving she was starting to think this was a terrible idea.

By his car parked in the driveway she knew he was home, but now she had no plan about how she was going to approach the situation. She could scold him but that would put him on the defensive. A gentler touch was needed. Although, she did have a tendency to put her foot in her mouth when provoked, and Curly had a tendency to provoke her.

A part of her wished he'd magically sense her presence and come out of the house, but he didn't, so she resigned herself to knocking. As she did, she prayed that Curly was the one to answer he door and not someone else, because she had no idea how to explain her presence.

Thankfully, it was Curly. He was still wearing the same clothes but had taken off his leather jacket. His hair looked messier, if that was possible because it was always rather untidy, and she wondered if he'd taken a nap. He regarded her with those intense blue eyes of him. Yellow had always been her favourite colour, but the colour of his eyes was inching closer to top position.

 _Stop it_ , she admonished herself, _get it together_.

"What're you doing here?" Curly asked, looking around like he expected someone to jump out and tell him this was all a joke. "How did you know where I live."

"Ponyboy told me." Peggy explained. "You didn't come to tutoring. I was worried."

And pissed as all hell, but she wasn't going to add that just yet.

"Why didn't you come?" She asked, her tone more disappointed than anything else. And she supposed she was disappointed in him for not coming.

"To do what? Sit in angry silence?"

"I am perfectly capable of removing our personal issues from my job, thank you very much." She snapped, and she swore he was almost grinning. "So that's why you didn't come, because we're...arguing."

"Didn't think you wanted me there." He shrugged.

"I very much want for you to graduate." She said. "I don't care whatever problems we're having, I'll put that all aside if it means you don't have to repeat your senior year."

Curly frowned at her, eyeing her up with surprise. Clearly it had never occurred to him that she cared that much, and he obviously hadn't considered the repercussions of his absence.

"So, you'll come back next week then?" She asked, hopefully.

He still looked completely taken aback by her reaction, but when she smiled at him she could sense his resolve faltering. He threw his hands up in defeat, and she took that as an agreement. For a moment she almost squealed with joy, but quickly got ahold of herself.

Of course, that was only one problem they'd addressed.

"Should we talk about...what happened?" She asked, and Curly shrugged, noncommitally. She really wished he'd stop shrugging and give her a straight answer. "We can't act like it didn't happen, we need to talk about it, we need to sort it out."

"Didn't think we had anything to sort out." He said. "You don't like me like that."

"I didn't-" She started, but stopped herself, and he raised his eyebrows at her. "Why did you kiss me?"

It was a stupid question to ask, and she could've cursed her curiosity. There was no right answer, and it was terribly unfair of her to have asked it. But a part of her needed to know why, the part that wouldn't rest until it had figured out his intentions.

Curly frowned at her, taking an unusual amount of time to respond.

"Because I wanted to."

Her heart dropped. She wasn't sure what answer she was hoping for, but by the sinking feeling in her stomach that wasn't it.

"Oh." She replied. "Is that all?"

He'd reduced their kiss - which had sent her mind spinning and sucked the breath out of her lungs - to nothing. A simple course of events. He'd wanted to do it so he did, nothing more, no deeper meaning.

Had he kissed Sarah the way he'd kissed her? How many other girls had he kissed like that? Was that all she was, another notch on his belt? Forgettable and inconsequential.

"What else is there?"

Her reaction, like all of her reactions recently, completely confused him. He'd kissed her because he wanted to, because he liked the way it made him feel, the way she made him feel. She was the one who'd rejected him, and now she was looking at him like he'd crushed all her hopes and dreams.

"I guess I just thought I meant something to you." She said, wearily, like she was trying very hard to keep her emotions in check. "I thought I was different, but clearly I'm not."

Peggy was looking at the ground intently as she backed away, as if she thought all her defenses would crumble if she so much as looked him in the eye.

Dammit, this wasn't what he wanted.

"Peggy." He called out, reaching out to grip her elbow, drawing her back in, this time so close she could probably feel his breath on her face.

Neither of them spoke at first, and neither of them moved. Peggy didn't push him away but she didn't try to get any closer either. At least she was looking at him now. From her expression he knew she was trying to figure out what he was doing and why, her mind running the scenarios to find the most accurate. He almost smiled at that.

They couldn't stand in silence forever but he didn't know what to say. He could've guessed what she wanted to hear, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to say it. Admitting he wanted to kiss her was one thing, admitting anything else was completely different. Even if he had started wondering if he wanted more from her than a kiss.

"You are different." He said, shifting uncomfortably, one of his fingers tapping softly against her elbow. "You do, mean something."

He couldn't add the 'to me', but her softening expression told him he'd said enough, and he almost thanked god. If he'd had to say anymore to convince her, he wasn't sure he could've.

"I don't think I'm too good for you." She whispered. "I think you're a wonderful person."

Those weren't words he'd ever heard before in his life. He half expected her to follow up with 'just kidding', or to immediately take it back. Instead she gave him that small smile of hers, the one that did funny things to his stomach.

He almost asked her if she meant it, but that would've sounded pathetic. Beside, of course she meant it, Peggy meant everything she said to him. Except when she told him she didn't like him, he thought she might've been lying about that one.

"I'll go to tutoring, on one condition." He said, grinning wryly. He hadn't technically agreed to go in the first place, and arguing he now when she thought she'd won would rile her up. He liked her like that.

"What?" She asked, her eyebrows knotting together.

"Kiss me."

For a moment she did nothing, then she looked up at him with accusatory eyes, her mouth in a hard line.

"No."

"Why?" He asked, not meaning it to sound as whiny as it came out.

"Because I won't let you take advantage of my kindness like that." She spat out, ripping her arm out of his hand.

That certainly wasn't the reaction he was going for, and not the one he expected.

"Jeez, Peggy, I didn't mean it like that."

And he hadn't. It had never even occurred to him. The only thing he'd thought about was kissing her again - which he still wanted to do. He didn't much care how he kissed her again, but he wanted her to want him to kiss her, and he wanted her to want to kiss him.

But she was still refusing to look at him. Clearly what he'd done had deeply offended her, more than anything he'd ever done before. She was overreacting, but he wanted to see her smile again.

"How'd you get here?" He asked, only now wondering how she'd made it to his house without a car.

"I took a bus, then walked." She said, sheepishly.

"Shit, Peggy, you coulda-" He started, but then stopped himself. Yelling at her wasn't going to make her less angry with him. "Can I give you a ride home?"

Finally she looked at him, uncertainty clear on her face. He liked that he could always tell how she was feeling. She couldn't play pretend, at least not with him.

"Yeah, I guess you can." She muttered.

Neither of them spoke for the entire car ride. Peggy spent the whole time staring out the window, looking like she had the weight of the world on her shoulders. He could tell she was thinking about something, but for the life of him he couldn't figure out what.

It was only when he pulled up outside her house that she spoke.

"Where do you see your life going?" Peggy asked.

"What?"

"How do you envision your future?" She reaffirmed. "And be honest."

He'd never been anything but honest with her, but now she was asking a lot. The future wasn't something he gave much thought to, and what little he did have an idea of he certainly wasn't inclined to share. It wasn't like anyone cared anyway. Still, he couldn't help feeling like that this was some sort of test.

"Ain't never thought about it." He muttered.

By the way her face fell, that wasn't the answer she was hoping for. She gave him a half-hearted smile as she picked up her bag and made for the door.

"Do you want me to come back to tutoring?" He asked, and she nodded limply. "Then I'll be there."

Peggy smiled at him properly then.


	20. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty**

 _November 1968_

Usually she caught a ride to work with Jane or Lori, but today Jennifer had ben uncharacteristically charitable and offered to drop her there after school. At first she thought she was just being nice, but by the way she was nervously moving about Peggy doubted it was kindness alone.

"I've got a date this weekend?" She finally said.

"With who?"

"His name's Teddy, his parents know my parents." She explained. "He's back from college for the weekend. He's studying business, going to work at his father's firm after he graduates."

"Is he good looking?"

"Quite."

Peggy wanted to ask more. If he was funny, or kind, or good-hearted, but she didn't think Jennifer had an answer for any of those questions. Currently he was ticking all of her boxes and unless he had some giant flaw, Jennifer would most likely look over anything right now. That must've been why she'd offered Peggy a ride, she thought Peggy would understand.

"Do you like him?"

"I don't know him that well." Jennifer admitted. "But his parents are nice, so he comes from a good family."

She said it like that settled the matter. His family was well-to-do and respectful so he must be gentleman. Peggy thought of Curly, who almost certainly didn't come from a good family and was anything but gentlemanly. But he made her laugh, and treated her better than Michael had.

"I hope it goes well." Peggy said, and she did, if only because Jennifer seemed so enthusiastic about anything as much as she was about this date.

They spent the rest of the car ride talking about Jennifer's date. Where they were going, what she should wear, what she should talk about. By the time Jennifer dropped her off Peggy was sick of talking about dates and was glad no one brought them up during her shift.

It probably didn't help that she hadn't had too many good dates in her life. All her dates with Michael had been awkward or involved some type of argument. No one else had ever asked, and whatever Curly had been thinking when he took her to the diner it hadn't been about dating her.

It was nearing the end of her shift and she was doing a final sweep to check for any stragglers. She wasn't at all surprised to find Bobby Brown huddled in a corner.

"I'm sorry buddy but we gotta close up," she told him. "You can come back tomorrow morning."

"Okay." He muttered.

Bobby stretched out his arm to hand the book over, clearly forgetting the large bruise on his forearm, a sickeningly yellow colour.

"Is that a bruise?" Peggy asked, and Bobby nodded limply. "How'd you get it?"

Bobby cast his eyes down to his feet, avoiding meeting her gaze.

"Was it at school?" She continued. "Did you get into a fight?"

"No." He mumbled. "I fell."

"You fell."

"Yeah."

"You know, you can tell me the truth, you won't get in trouble."

"I fell, and that's truth."

And with that he ran away. She knew he was lying, it didn't take a genius to figure that one out. If she had to guess she'd say it happened at school, other kids picking on him no doubt. By his reaction he hadn't told his teachers what happened, probably out of fear of repercussion. Peggy picked up his backpack from the ground, thankful that he'd forgotten it in his haste to get away since she know had an excuse to find him.

It was well and truly nighttime when she stepped off the bus, two blocks away from the address that had been scrawled on the tag of Bobby's backpack. She'd only been in the neighbourhood once before, when she'd hunted down Curly, and thinking back on his concern she was starting to wonder if this was such a good idea.

But there wasn't any bus coming soon and she wasn't going to stand around in the dark, so she set out, perhaps more hypervigilant than normal.

The house was small and rundown, but looked pretty much the same as the other's around it. She could hear the television blaring as she knocked on the door, which was almost immediately ripped open.

The boy on the other side looked about the same age as her, perhaps a little older. He was tall and dark-haired, with a mean look that turned hungry once he saw her, his eyes lingering a little too long over her legs.

"Who are you?" He asked, gruffly.

"I'm Peggy. I'm looking for Bobby, is he here?"

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry, I didn't get your name."

"Ronny, I'm Bobby's brother." He answered. "Why don't you come inside?"

"I don't think,"

"Nah, come in, can't leave ya standing out in the cold."

She might've thought he was being nice if not for the way he made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. Reluctantly, she stepped over the threshold, but remained in the doorway, preventing him from closing off her only escape route.

"What can I do for you, Peggy?" He asked, drawing out her nane.

"Bobby left his backpack at the library." She said, holding it up.

"Course he did. Kid's a forgetful fuck." Ronny muttered, grabbing the backpack and tossing it onto the floor. "You came all this way just for that, don't think they pay you enough for such generosity."

"Actually, I noticed some bruises on Bobby's arm today."

Whatever fake niceness Ronny had vanished in an instance, his jaw clenching up as he glared at her.

"Where'd he say he got it?" He demanded.

"He said he fell." She replied. "I thought he might've gotten it at school."

Now she was beginning to wonder if it hadn't been a little closer to home.

Ronny curled up his fist at his side, smirking viciously when he saw her notice. Taking a step closer, he leant down so they were almost nose-to-nose, so close that she could feel his breath on her face. His eyes were darkened with rage but she couldn't move. She wanted to scream, to run away, but she was frozen in place.

"Now you listen here, if he said he fell then he fell, you got that." He growled, reaching down to grip her wrist tightly, shaking her. "I said you got it?"

"I got it." She winced, wriggling her hand to try to get away from him. It was a useless endeavour but at least her arms workd.

"So don't come back here asking stupid questions. Or else I might'nt be so nice next time."

Ronny waited a moment, watching her failed attempts to get out his grip with morbid glee. Finally he let her go, shoving her over the threshold and slamming the door behind her.

Peggy stumbled down the steps, rubbing at her wrist. It would bruise, and she wasn't sure how to explain that one. Only when she made it to the sidewalk did she realise the weight of her predicament. She was stuck in an unfamiliar neighbourhood with no way out and no idea where she was.

If there'd been a gas station or store closeby she would've walked there and called home. But she hadn't seen any on her way here and didn't want to risk wandering around. There was only one place she knew here. It was a long shot that he'd even be home, but it was better than staying there and having Ronny get anywhere near her again.


	21. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty One**

 _November 1968_

It was a warm night for late autumn, and Curly found himself sitting on the porch smoking. No one else had come home yet, so he'd fixed himself a dinner of cereal washed down with beer and settled down in front of the television. But then he'd gotten antsy and come outside.

He'd contemplated going down to Buck's or the Dingo. It was a Friday night so there should be some action, it was better than sitting at home doing nothing. Putting out his cigarette, he slipped on his leather jacket, grabbing his keys from his pocket. He hadn't decided where he was going to go yet, figured he'd make up his mind once he was driving.

There was a figure across the road, and he wondered what they were doing roaming the streets at this time of night. Only troublemakers were out and about around this neighbourhood. Then the figure crossed the street, and he was even more confused when he recognised them.

"Peggy." He called out, watching her with a mix of suspicion and concern.

In no time at all she had crossed the yard, and without a stopping she almost flung herself against his chest, the textbook in her hands slamming into him. Somewhat hesitantly, he wrapped his arms around her.

She leant her head down against his chest, her tears wetting his shirt. Comforting girls was hardly a common occurence for him, and crying girls made him uneasy. But this was Peggy, he couldn't turn her away.

They stayed like that for awhile. She'd long since stopped crying, but neither of them moved. It was nice, having her this close, feeling her pressed against him. Even if the circunstances were less than ideal. He hadn't thought she'd ever let her anywhere near him after he'd kissed her.

"You okay?" He whispered.

Peggy pulled back, wiping her cheeks with her hand. "Yeah, yeah I'm fine." She said. "Sorry, I didn't know anyone else in the neighbourhood."

"What happened?"

"I had work and a boy forgot his backpack, so I took it to his house." She explained. "And his older brother was there."

"Did he hurt you?" He asked, his fists curling at his side.

"No, he just threatened me."

She said it as if that somehow made it better. In Curly's opinion so much as looking at her wrong was a punishable offence. He had half a mind to reprimand Peggy for doing something so blatantly stupid, but those ideas disappeared when he felt her shaking in his arms.

"Where is he?" Curly demanded, through gritted teeth.

Peggy opened her mouth but quickly shut it upon realising that Curly planned on setting him straight with his fists.

"Please, not tonight," she whispered. Curly made to back away but she reached down to grab ahold of his hand, pulling him back to her. "I don't want anymore trouble. Just take me, somewhere, anywhere, anywhere but here."

She was looking at him with pleading eyes and he could feel his resolve faltering. Ordinarily he wouldn't have hesitated, but she looked like she'd start crying again any minute.

"Okay, c'mon."

Peggy trudged along behind him as he led her to the car. Once they were inside she shifted to his side once more, slipping her arm through his. Even if it was only because she was upset, he wasn't complaining. He started the car and backed out of the driveway, all the while grinning to himself.

Neither of them spoke during the car ride, and Peggy remained glued to him, her head resting against his shoulder. If she was starting to regret their closeness she wasn't showing it. He hoped she wasn't. He liked the feeling of her pressed against him, even if the circumstances weren't sexual.

Her silence unnerved him though. He'd never known Peggy to be quiet, the opposite really. The night's events had clearly shaken her up, but he didn't know what to say to make it better, if he even could make it better.

Once he pulled up in the parking lot she finally untangled herself from him, slipping out of the car. He quickly joined her side, watching with bemusment as she looked scornfully at the establishment.

"Where are we?"

"Buck's." He replied, reaching down to take her hand, pulling her forward. "C'mon."

"You better not be getting me into trouble, Curly Shepard."

"I wouldn't dare."

She smiled for the first time that night.

It was just as packed on the inside as it was on the outside. Curly slipped through the crowd, gripping Peggy's hand tightly as he tugged her along. Once they made it to the bar he let go of her hand, gesturing to Buck to get his attention.

"Two beers." He called out, practically sensing Peggy raising her eyebrows at him without even needing to look.

"Is it always this busy?" Peggy asked, shuffling closer to him.

"Nah, depends on the day." He replied, taking the beers from Buck and handing one to Peggy.

She examined it closely before taking a sip, her face contorting in revulsion as soon as the liquid touched her lips. All the while, Curly chuckled to himself. He hadn't expected her to like it on the first try, and he knew she hadn't drunk it before.

"That's disgusting." She said, putting the bottle down on the bar. "You can't honestly say you like that."

"It's an acquired taste."

"Much like yourself."

"You think you're so funny, don't ya?"

"I don't think, I know."

Peggy surveyed the crowd, her eyes hesistating over the dancefloor. The couples were pressed up against each other, swaying to the music. It wasn't anything out of the ordinary for Buck's, or even for a party for that matter.

"What?" He asked.

"Nothing," she said. "I just, don't know how people can do that."

"We've danced." He pointed out.

"Yeah, but not like that. I couldn't dance like that in public."

"In private then?"

Peggy blushed at him, but she didn't say no. He took that as an indication he had some kind of shot at getting her pressed up against him that close.

"D'you wanna dance?" He asked, and she raised her eyebrows up at him. "Not like that."

"How then?"

"Whatever way you want." He shrugged, holding out his hand.

With only a moment of hesistation she placed her hand in his, letting him pull her onto the dancefloor. There wasn't much space but he kept enough distance from her to make her comfortable as he twirled her around. Her beer sloshed around, almost spilling onto the floor, forcing her to take a long swig to lower the contents.

"Acclimatised yet?" He half yelled over the music.

"I think I'll need a few more before that."

"I bet." He grinned. "Wanna play a game of pool?"

Peggy nodded, and he grabbed ahold of her hand, pulling her over to the free pool table.

"Want me to show ya how to play?"

"I know how to play pool." She muttered, bitterly.

"I know you do."

She wasn't half bad actually, she was beating him at least. Not that he was bothered, he was too busy enjoying the sight of her bent over the table, her skirt lifting up ever so slightly. He remembered the softness of her skin, and he had a sudden urge to run his hands up her legs. But he had that urge pretty much every time he saw her.

"You ain't half bad."

"My grandparents have a billiards room in their house, us kids always used to have a game whenever we were there."

Curly didn't think you could fit a pool table anywhere in his house, let alone have a whole room dedicated to it. By the way Peggy shifted uncomfortably, he thought she might now be realising that it didn't exactly seem normal to him.

"They got money?"

"Yeah." She said, sheepishly. "My dad's family hasn't though."

The way she said it made it sound like there was a story there, but she didn't look to eager to tell him.

"I should come over for a game," he said. "Or won't they appreciate my leather jacket?"

"Not half as much as I do."

Peggy looked at him over her shoulder, flicking those long eyelashes at him. If she were anyone else he would've thought she was flirting with him. He was about to ask her what she was playing at, when Ricky Stuart strode up to them, leaning against the table uncomfortably close to her.

"What's your name pretty thing?" He drawled, taking his time looking her up and down.

"Peggy."

"Whatcha doing hanging around with this bum?" Ricky asked, nodding his head to Curly.

"Fuck off, Ricky." Curly spat, reaching out his arm to wrap around Peggy's waist to pull her against his chest. "Or I'll beat your ass just like my brother did."

Ricky grimaced. "You Shepard boys are stupid for pussy."

If Peggy hadn't grabbed onto his arm Curly would've jumped him then and there. A beatdown was nothing less than what he deserved for speaking Peggy like that. Rose too for that matter. He just might have to mention this encounter with Tim.

"You okay?" Peggy asked, eyeing him curiously but not moving away.

"I'm fine. You."

"Fine." She replied. "What was that about?"

"Didn't think you wanted him hassling you." Curly shrugged. "He won't if he thinks you're with me."

"That's stupid."

"Won't help again then." He scoffed, pulling his arm back.

"No, not that. Thank you for, that." She said. "It's stupid that he has more respect for your presumed claim on me than my right to reject him."

When she said it like that it did sound stupid, but he'd never thought to much about ut before.

"Who knew you were so chivalrous?" She teased.

"Don't say that too loudly." He said. "I've got a reputation to think about."

"And what kind of reputation is that?" She asked, tilting her head up towards him.

They were close enough that he could feel her breath, short and sharp, against his face. Her eyes were alight with something, what he didn't know, but whatever it was it was drawing him in. He was so caught up in her thar he didn't notice Jimmy approaching until he was right in front of them.

"You alright?"

"Yeah, man," Curly replied. "You know Ricky's all talk."

"You got that right." Jimmy said, his eyes flicking between him and Peggy expectantly.

"You know Peggy, right?"

"Yeah, we have gym together." Nancy said. "Never seen you 'round here before."

"First time." She admitted. "You two want to join us for a game?"

"Sure." Nancy said, ignoring her boyfriend's grumble. "Two-on-two."

"Careful with this one." Curly warned, pointing to Peggy. "She's a sore loser."

"Am not." Peggy claimed, giving him a playful shove.

For the most part Peggy managed to contain her competitiveness, which was a good thing since Nancy couldn't play pool for shit. But after only one game Curly could tell Peggy was one bad shot away from ringing Nancy's neck, so he suggested they take a break.

As they walked towards the couches, Curly leaned down to whisper in her ear. "You good?"

"Keeping it together." She replied, winking at him.

There were a couple cuddled together on the couch but they soon scurried away when Curly told them to beat it, ignoring Peggy's disapproving looks as they sat down. Jimmy was a bit muffed that Nancy had sat on the opposite end, too engrossed in conversation with Peggy to notice her boyfriend was pissed. But he wasn't about to complain.

The couch wasn't all that big, so he had Peggy pressed up against his side, like she had been for pretty much the whole night. He wasn't sure what was running through her head. She showed up on his doorstep in distress, and had spent most of the night teetering on the edge of flirtacious. If he was in her shoes he'd say she wanted to get laid, but that didn't sound like Peggy.

Curly felt movement next to him, turning to see Peggy casually stretching her hand out to rest on his thigh. She made no mention of this development, instead turning to talk to Nancy, but Curly followed her previous eye line to find a dejected looking Sarah Davis. He grinned to himself, slipping his arm around her side to rest on her hip.

Of course, Nancy just had to choose that moment to go to the bathroom and she just had to insist that Peggy join her. What was it with girls and moving in packs?

"You dating her?" Jimmy asked as soon as they were out of earshot, and Curly shook his head. "You sure about that?"

"Yeah I'm sure."

"You sleeping with her?" He asked, and Curly grimaced. "Why the hell not? She's clearly into you."

"Don't think she knows that."

"Shit man, she knows."

By the time the girls returned from the bathroom Jimmy had had enough. Getting up from the couch he strode over to them, whispering something in Nancy's ear before the two of them scuttled up the stairs. Curly was glad his friend was getting some, but also annoyed that he wasn't.

Peggy looked lost as she tried to weave her way through the crowd towards him, giving him an appreciative smile when he met her halfway.

"You wanna bounce? Get something to eat?"

"Sure."

Curly had half a mind to slip his hand into hers as he led her outside, but thought better of it. He wondered if Peggy was disappointed or relieved, but considering she made no move herself he guessed she didn't care. They weren't cuddled up during this car ride, but Peggy wasn't exactly keeping her distance either, like she couldn't make up her mind.

When he pulled into the carpark at The Dingo he was reminded of the last time he'd brought her here. It was emptier now. He wondered if Peggy was thinking about it too. He thought she might be, she struck him as the sentimental type.

There was silence between them once they'd given their orders. They'd never had a problem with talking before, but this was different. Everything that had happened was hanging over them. He wanted to reach out and take her hand, to pull her closer. He wanted to kiss her senseless and run his hands up her body and whisper dirty things in her ear. But he couldn't do any of those things.

"You okay now?"

"Yeah, I'm all good now." She assured him. "Thanks, for all of this. You're a good guy, you know that."

"Most would disagree with you."

"Maybe I just know you better than them." She suggested. "Or maybe I just don't know you well enough."

He wanted it to be the former, but it was most likely the latter.

The waitress returned with their food before he could reply. There was more silence as they ate, but this time it didn't feel awkward like it would with anyone other than Peggy.

"What's upstairs? At Buck's."

For a momet Curly was too taken aback to ask. He thought about lying but decided it wasn't worth it.

"The bedrooms."

Peggy nodded back, casually, but he knew it made her uncomfortable. She wasn't so naive that she couldn't guess what happened in said rooms.

"Have you been up there?"

Her gaze was steady, unpeturbed. If the idea of him having sex at Buck's bothered her she was letting it show. But why should it? They weren't together and she didn't want them to be, that much she'd made clear.

"Yeah. Couple of times." He admitted. No use in lying about it. "Does that bother you?"

"Why would it?" She asked, returning her gaze to the fries she was pushing around her plate.

"Yeah, why would it? Ain't like there's anything between us."

Peggy dropped the fry in her hands, leaning back and crossing her arms. He hadn't wanted to start an argument but he couldn't help himself. He'd been angling for something and she hadn't given it to him, whatever it was.

"Mature, reasonable people don't care about other people's exes." She pointed out. "Do you want me to be jealous? Would you be jealous if I'd been up there with Michael?"

"Michael's too much of a punk to go anywhere near Buck's."

"That doesn't answer the question."

Curly clenched his jaw. She wasn't going to let it go. That was the one thing he didn't like about Peggy, she was like a dog with a bone, she'd never learned to drop it. He supposed no one had ever taught her to.

"I wouldn't like it."

It wasn't much of an admittance but it was all he was going to give her. He wasn't going to tell her that the mere idea of anyone else touching her had him on the brink of rage. It was stupid. Most of the girls he'd hung around with weren't virgins and it had never bothered him before. He didn't think it would've bothered him that much if Peggy wasn't. What really bothered him was that they weren't sleeping together.

"What's it feel like?"

"Huh?"

"Sex." She clarified, blushing slightly. "What's it feel like, to be with someone like that?"

"I don't know, it's good I guess." He replied, forcing himself not to laugh. She looked so genuinely curious that he couldn't embarass her like that. "Feels good."

"I know that."

It took a few moments of watching Peggy's face redden to get what she'd meant, by then he was grinning ear to ear. He certainly hadn't expected her to do that let alone outright admit it.

"You,"

"Yes." She said, stubbornly jutting her chin out. "You got a problem with that."

"Nah, baby, just really turned on."

Unbelievably so. He couldn't help the mental image of Peggy, naked and writhing in her bed. It wasn't a new fantasy, but since he'd never seen her bedroom he always pictured her in his, and never alone. He wondered if she'd ever pictured him like he had her.

Peggy gave him a coy smile that looked almost like an invitation. He imagined it was the kind of look she'd give him in the bedroom, begging, pleading for him and him alone.

But then the smile was gone, her eyes all innocence once more.

"My sister, Anna, she says it's better when it's with someone you love."

"Wouldn't know."

"Me either." She said. "Obviously, I don't know why I said that, you already know that, and now I'm rambling."

"S'okay," he said, grinning at her. "Why didn't you sleep with Michael? Can't believe he dated you for that long and didn't want to."

"I didn't want to."

"Not ready?"

Peggy shrugged. "Everything with him was so obligatory. I don't know if I ever really liked him like that. It never...Kissing him didn't feel like kissing you."

Curly hadn't expected that. He'd seen her with Michael enough to know she'd never really liked him. And he knew that she was attracted to him, that he could make her feel things that Michael couldn't. But the way she said it made it sound like there was more to it, more than physical that is, like their kiss had been more than a kiss.

 _Of course it was more_ , a voice in his head told him, _you wouldn't be here if it wasn't_.

"Maybe he's just a shit kisser."

It wasn't the right thing to say. Her downcast look made that clear. But he didn't know what she wanted from him. He could never tell with her. Other girls were obvious, they either wanted to date him or sleep with him. He thought Peggy might've wanted both of those things.

"Yeah, maybe." She agreed, with what almost sounded like disappointment as she flashed him a half-hearted smile. "You should probably take me home now."

Curly nodded, pulling some notes out of his pocket and chucking them on the table. If she kept needing to be cheered up she was going to run him dry. He led her to his car, considering opening the door for her but knew it was a stupid thought. It wasn't like this was a date.

Peggy watched him as he started the car, hesitating for a moment before sliding across the seat to settle against him, her head resting against his shoulder. Curly grinned to himself, leaning down to brush his lips against her forehead. It was a stupid move, but she didn't move away so he figured it couldn't be too bad.

Her house was dark when he pulled up out the front. He'd offered to park around the street, but she insisted that she couldn't sneak into her house anyway.

"You gonna be in trouble?"

"Probably. Not much I can do about it now." She said. "Thanks, again, you've been a real friend to me tonight."

The words sounded like poison to him, and he bitterly regretted how much it affected him.

"Not a problem." He shrugged. "I was going out anyway."

Peggy nodded awkwardly, neither of them sure what to say. He wanted to say something, if only to make her stay a little longer. He had a feeling she'd be pretending this night didn't happen, just like she pretended there wasn't anything between them. A damn phoney is what she was.

"Curly," she said, turning to look at him as she opened the door with such honest eyes that it felt like a punch to the gut. "It bothers me."

Then she was gone.


	22. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty Two**

 _November 1968_

After the alcohol had worn off and she'd put some distance between her and Curly, Peggy was left feeling like an absolute fool. Going to Bobby's house was a stupid move, she could see that now, and letting Curly take her and show her a good time was equally stupid. She should've gotten him to take her home straight away, it would've been the smart thing to do.

But a part of her regretted nothing. Having fun with Curly had been exactly what she needed to get her mind off of what happened. It wasn't until she was lying on her bed in the dark that the memories crept in, the feeling of Ronny only a hairbreadth away from her, his eyes gleaming maliciously. Even then, all she had to do was think of Curly to chase the memories away.

And she spent most of the night thinking about Curly. How his hand's had felt on her, how he'd smiled at her and made her laugh. Now that the moment had passed she could die of embarassment. She'd been handsy and forward, casually bringing up sex as if she didn't know he liked her. Or wanted her at least. With the way he kept shutting down the flirting she wasn't too sure anymore.

Grabbing her bag with the intent of distracting herself with schoolwork, her plans fell apart when she realised her textbook was missing. She'd had it with her last night when she arrived at Curly's house, leaving only one place it could be, with the exact person she wanted to avoid.

At least a dozens time during the drive over she convinced herself to turn back, that she didn't actually need her textbook all that much. But with the Thanksgiving break she wouldn't have many opportunities to get it back before school returned.

When Peggy pulled up in front of Curly's house she spotted his car in the driveway, the hood up and someone leaning under it. From her position she couldn't see if it was Curly or not. She had half a mind to turn around and head home, but she needed her textbook.

Once she closed the car door behind her a head popped out from behind the hood, and she breathed a sigh of relief at that familiar face.

"Peggy," Curly greeted. "What're you doing here?"

Curly straightened up, giving her a full view of his shirtless chest. He was broad shouldered, by no means bulky but well shaped enough. Her fingers tingled at the memory of them running over those muscles. Peggy swallowed the lump in her throat, and stepped forward.

"I left my textbook in your car last night." She explained.

"Right." He said. "It's on the seat."

"Okay, thanks." Peggy muttered, her eyes drifting down from his face. She hadn't seen many shirtless men in her life so she didn't know if Curly was above or below average, but she was guessing the former.

Peggy pulled her jacket around her tighter, rolling on the balls of her feet. Getting her book and leaving were the next logical steps but she wanted to stay. If only she could think of something to say to make it less awkward.

"Did you get in trouble with your folks last night?"

For a moment she was too stunned to respond. She'd half expected him to act like last night hadn't happened, but then she realised denial was more her style than his.

"No. I told my Mom I worked overtime at the library."

"And she believed you?" Curly scoffed.

"I don't think so," Peggy admitted. "But I didn't get into trouble so it's all okay."

"Thanks again, for last night." She continued. "I needed that."

Curly shrugged. "What're friends for?"

"Friends, right." Peggy gave him a half-hearted smile.

If they were 'just friends' she'd eat her hat, but friends was better than nothing.

"You still not gonna tell me who it was?" Peggy shook her head at him. "Why?"

"What're you going to do if I tell you?"

"Find him and teach him a lesson on how to talk to girls."

"I'm assuming this lesson will involve fists." Peggy sighed. "That's why I don't want to tell you. You don't need to be fighting over me, or for me, or whatever. If you got caught and arrested, I don't think I could live with myself knowing you did it for me."

"What if I said I was doing it for my own sick pleasure?"

"I'd saying you were lying." She replied. "Do you do this for all your friends that are girls?"

"I don't have other friends that are girls."

"Am I special then?"

"You could say that."

"Oh."

It was hardly eloquent but she couldn't think straight with Curly looking at her like that. Not that he was looking at her in any particular way. He was just looking at her. It was enough to make her weak at the knees.

"What're you doing?" She asked, stepping up to the hood of the car.

"Engine sounded funny, can't see anything wrong with it though." Curly explained. "Might get Randle to have a look at it since I can't afford to get it fixed."

"Oh." Cars weren't exactly a topic she could spend long talking about. "I don't know anything about cars. I know how to change a tire and check my oil but that's about it."

"Here, I'll show you."

Beckoning her closer, he pointed out each of the parts, telling her their names and giving a short explanation of their use. Most of it went over her head, but she liked the way he smiled as he talked and she had to remind herself not to stare.

Leaning back, he grabbed the rag to wipe the oil and grease from his hands, revealing a circular shaped scar on his thumb.

Peggy reached forward to take his hand, running her thumb over the scar. "What's that from?"

"Me and Ponyboy played chicken once," he explained. "With cigarettes."

"You burned each other?" She asked, her eyes wide. "Why?"

Curly shrugged. "Stupid kid stuff I guess."

"Did you at least win?"

"Nah, Tim found us and knocked our heads together 'fore either of us could win."

"Of course he did."

Peggy's eyes lowered to Curly's chest and arms, where there were an array of scars, some fainter than others. Without thinking about it, she lifted her hands to trace her finger along the ones trailing up his left arm.

"What about these ones?"

"Barbed wire." He replied, and she didn't ask what he was doing around barbed wire. Nothing legal, that's for sure.

Moving her hand to the scar over his shoulder, she could feel his breath quickening underneath her fingers. Somehow they'd managed to move closer without her noticing. She stubbornly kept her eyes on his chest, not daring to meet his gaze, too scared of what those eyes might to do her.

"And this one?"

"Walked into a wall when I was a kid, fucking nail was sticking out."

Now her hand drifted down to his abdomen. This scar was thicker than the rest, less faded too. She was overcome by the sudden urge to press her lips to the skin but managed to keep herself in check, looking up at him instead.

"That one?"

Curly grimaced. "I got shivved when I was in the reformatory."

"Oh." Peggy said, pulling her hand back. By the way his shoulders tensed up she guessed it wasn't a pleasant memory.

"Check this out." She said, pulling up her sleeve to expose her elbow, faint white lines pulling over the skin. "Fell into the window while running when I was seven."

"Shit, you did a decent job." He chuckled, taking her elbow into his hands for further inspection.

Curly maintained eye contact as he leant closer, pressing a soft kiss to the scars. A shiver went down Peggy's spine, her heart beating so fast she thought it might jump out of her chest. Smirking at her, Curly dropped her arm back down to her side.

Blinking a few times she stepped back, taking a moment to compose herself. It was only a kiss, a peck really, it shouldn't have her head spinning this much.

"What are you even doing shirtless?" She asked. "It's November."

"I thought I told you I run hot."

In one quick movement Curly reached out to wrap his arm around her waist, pulling her in against his chest. With her back to him she had to look over her shoulder to see his face.

"Can't ya tell."

"Yeah," she said. "I can tell."

Neither of them made to pull away despite Curly having adequately proved his point. His breath was warm against her skin, his hands gripping her waist. She wondered what his lips would feel like pressed to the hollow of her neck.

"You're getting oil on my shirt." She said. "D'you just wanna ruin all my clothes?"

Curly smirked, leaning to whisper in her ear. "Only if it gets you outta them."

 _Yes, please take my clothes off_. It was an involuntary thought she immediately reprimanded herself for, not that it wasn't the truth. She wanted to pull him closer, draw him in, feel him pressed against her as they kissed.

Instead, she gently pushed him away.

"Get your mind outta the gutter." She playfully rebuked, ignoring the way she missed the feeling of his arms around her. It wasn't appropriate to be letting a boy that wasn't her boyfriend touch her like that, especially in public.

Curly opened his mouth to speak but snapped it shut at the sound of the door opening, Tim stepping out of the house. As he walked down the porch steps he watched them warily, his eyes flicking between them, taking in the oil stains on her shirt and their close proximity.

"You heading out?" Curly asked.

Tim nodded, not providing anymore information and Curly didn't push him for it. She thought that might've been normal for them.

"Peggy, right?"

It was her turn to nod now. The way Tim was looking at her had her on edge, it was as if he knew something she didn't. Straightening her back, she looked him square in the eyes as he approached.

"What're you doing here?" He demanded.

"Picking up my textbook."

"Why was your textbook in my house?"

"It was in Curly's car."

"Why was it in Curly's car?"

"Geez, Tim, lay off her." Curly said. "I borrowed it, she came over to pick it up, what's the problem?"

Tim shrugged. "No problem."

"Kinda seems like there is." Peggy's voice was unwavering, even as he turned those stern eyes on her. "I don't remember doing anything to earn your ire."

"Fancy words."

"I'm a fancy girl."

"Too fancy for 'ole Curly here."

Taken aback, Peggy didn't immediately reply. What was it with these Shepard boys and their assumptions of her? It wasn't like Tim had any evidence to support his claim, just his own prejudices.

"I don't think that." Peggy objected, leaning closer into Curly. "And Curly knows that."

Tim glanced skeptically towards his brother, scoffing slightly, but walking down the driveway instead of arguing further. Part of her was disappointed. She wanted to prove him wrong.

"You do know that, don't you?" Her voice was not nearly as confident now.

Curly looked down at her, his expression a little sad. "Yeah, I know."

Then the sadness was gone, replaced with his usual bravado. "What do you even need the textbook for, we've got the week off?"

"I'm going to do work in that week." She said, like it was obvious. "What're you doing for Thanksgiving?"

"Nothing. You?"

"I'm going to my grandparents." She replied. "I'd invite you but it'd probably be very awkward for you, lots of invasive questions."

"Sounds terrible." He commented, regarding her curiously. "You'd really invite me?"

"Yeah, my siblings already like you." She said. "The other week Karen asked about the cute boy from the grocery store, I of course had to correct her, and say that you are in fact hideously ugly."

"You're in denial, girl."

 _About a lot of things_.

"Whatever you say." She replied. "I should probably head home. I guess I'll see you later."

"Yeah, I guess so."

Curly flashed her a knowing grin and she had to retreat quickly to hide her involuntary blush. She wasn't sure what it was about him that made her act so giddy. Well, it probably had something to do with his stupidly handsome face and the very real memory of what his hands felt like pressed against her. Even thinking about it now had all her blood rushing to her head.

Once she reached her house she rushed inside and up the stairs, bursting into her sister's room. Vickie was huddled over her desk scribbling away in her workbook, looking up startled at the interruption. It wasn't usual for them to walk into each other's room unannounced.

"Are you okay?" Vickie asked.

Peggy let out a sigh, flopping onto the bed. "It's terrible, Vickie."

"What is?"

"I think I like Curly." She admitted, before reconsidering. "No, I know I like him."

"And that's terrible why?" Vickie replied. "Does he not like you back."

"Well, he kissed me so he bloody well should after the fuss he kicked up when I rejected him."

"If you liked him why'd you reject him?"

"I didn't know I liked him at the time." She replied. "Or maybe I did, I don't know."

It was hard to pinpoint the exact moment she'd realised she had feelings for Curly. She thought they might've been there for longer then she was ready to admit, steadily growing until she couldn't ignore them anymore.

"It's like...I think I need a pros and cons list." Peggy said, sitting up. "I need to figure out if this is the right decision."

"Alright." Vickie said, sitting down at the desk and pulling out a pen and paper. She drew a line down the page, writing pros on one side and cons on the other. "Go."

"Well, first, it'll really hurt Michael since he already blames Curly for the breakup. Second, he's rough, and not the Rebel Without a Cause rough but real rough. The kind of guy everyone tells you not to date because they're just gonna end up hurting you."

"Do you think Curly will hurt you?"

 _Did she?_ She certainly didn't trust him not to. But he hadn't yet. She'd been the one doing all the hurting.

"I don't know."

"Okay, what about some pros?"

"He's a really good kisser, and I really liked kissing him." Peggy admitted. "He's funny, he makes me laugh, he makes things feel better, he makes me feel things. I don't know, it's hard to explain. Everyone thinks he's this delinquent, and he is, but he's also kinda sweet, and goofy, and a whole lot nicer than anyone would think."

Vickie nodded along, saying nothing as she jotted the points down. Peering over her shoulder, Peggy noticed the pros column was a lot fuller than the cons.

"Okay." Vickie said, holding up the piece of paper to show her before tearing it down the middle.

"What was that for?" Peggy asked. It seemed like such a shame to rip up something they'd worked so hard on.

"Because, this list is absolute bullshit." Vickie said, matter-of-factly. "All of your cons have to do with how other people are going to feel, and Curly's prospects, which is kind of shitty, by the way."

"Thanks." She muttered.

"You're welcome." Vickie replied. "All of your pros are about how you feel and how Curly makes you feel, and that's what matters in a relationship."

Vickie was rather naive if she thought that was _all_ that mattered. Love was great but it didn't pay the bills, and it wasn't much of a foundation. Besides, she wasn't in love with Curly, she'd only just admitted she liked the guy.

"If you like Curly you should go for it, you'll regret it if you don't."

Peggy nodded along, though she retained her right to ignore all advice and continue to live in denial. Maybe if she pushed down the feelings they'd eventually disappear. Even as the thought crossed her head she doubted its accuracy, so she slumped down in defeat, resigned to the oncoming onslaught of headaches caused by her attraction to Curly Shepard.


	23. Chapter 23

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty Three**

 _December 1968_

The house loomed large before them, somehow bigger than usual. Ordinarily, her grandparents house would feel welcoming to Peggy, but it never did when she was with her parents. Her mother anxiously fussed over them, making sure not so much as a hair was out of place, whilst her father tried to stop her from fretting.

Her grandmother greeted them, impeccably dressed in her rather out-dated dress and pearl necklace. Ushering them inside she showed them into the formal living room, where the adults would sit and talk and drink, and the children would be quiet until called upon. Peggy never had any trouble with obedience, but it had always rankled Anna and Vickie.

"Good evening, all." Her grandfather announced as he entered the room, coming over to kiss his daughter's cheek and give Howard's hand a firm shake, before settling into his favourite armchair. "How are we all?"

As usual, each of them gave a report on their school progress, Stanley nodded politely and only interrupting to give helpful suggestions about how to better order your life. Or not-so-helpful, depending on who you asked.

"When will Bertie be here?" Stanley asked.

If Peggy had multiple uncles to choose from Bertie would be her favourite, but she only had the one so the statement didn't have quite the same gravitas. He was the kind of cool uncle who fed you full of candy and let you stay up until midnight on a schoolnight. They didn't see him that often since he moved to California, only Thanksgiving, Christmas and maybe the occasional birthday.

The sound of the doorbell answered that question.

"That must be him now." Minnie said, bounding out of her chair.

"Bertie's bringing home a girl." Stanley told them. "I hope she's better than the last few."

It was a tradition that her uncle brought a new date every Thanksgiving, each one more outlandish than the last. One of them had been a mime who didn't speak the whole night, another claimed to be a medium and invited them to hold a seance.

"Doubtful." Howard muttered, and Stanley grumbled in agreement.

Bertie did not disappoint them this year. The woman hanging off his arm had long hair with flowers clipped on to certains strands, and wore bell-bottom jeans and a tie-dyed shirt with a vest overtop. But these were not the most scandalous parts of her outfit, that was a contest between her bare feet and the fact she quite obviously wasn't wearing a bra.

Everyone was momentarily too stunned to speak. Howard was forced to fake a coughing fit to hide his laughter and Vickie looked like she was seconds away from joining him. Stanley, on the other hand, looked ready to strangle his son.

"Everyone, this is Summer."

"Summer, that's...an interesting name." Minnie said, maintaining her composure better than the rest of them.

"Thank you. My name used to be Mary, but I feel that Summer better represents me as a person."

"I see." Minnie nodded, gesturing for them to sit. "Are you from around here?"

"No, I live in California, San Francisco."

"We met whilst I was there for work." Bertie explained.

The pair of them looked very odd squished together on the couch. Bertie had dressed up for the occasion, having given up on insisting to wear casual dress after one too many arguments with his parents. It was all very different from the pictures of him when he was younger that her mother had once shown her. With his James Dean-esque looks and motorcycle he was quite the rebel. Peggy thought that him and Curly would've liked each other.

"What's your latest project, Suzanne?" Minnie asked, directing the conversation away from Summer before she could say anything too controversial.

"Well, it started with a red square on a white canvas, but that looked a bit bare so a threw in a yellow triangle, but that was a bit unbalanced so I added a green circle."

"Isn't minimalism all the rage nowadays?" Bertie asked.

"I don't understand how you can call that art, Robert told me someone tried to sell him a blank canvas the other week." Stanley said. "It's all certainly inferior compared to the master artworks of the Renaissance."

"It's not about the details, it's about what it represents." Suzanne said. "The meaning people draw from it."

"What could a blank canvas possibly mean?"

"The bleakness of the human condition in modern society." Howard deadpanned.

"Or perhaps birth, how we start off as a blank canvas." Suzanne countered. "That's the beauty of art, it can mean something different to everyone."

"It must be amazing to be an artist, to create anything you want." Summer sighed in awe. "Have you ever painted a nude portrait?"

Minnie's eyebrows shot up so high Peggy was surprised they remained on her face, but Suzanne was unperturbed by the question.

"Painted no, but at school we were required to sketch the human body."

"School? Wow, you must've gone to a very liberated school."

"Art school." Minnie corrected, somewhat tersely. "Dinner should be ready soon, why don't we go into the dining room."

They all took their seats at the table, arranged according to name tags. Peggy was seated next to Vickie and Mikey, her parents opposite them with her other siblings further down. Minnie had carefully placed Summer at the other end of the table next to her, most likely so she could do damage control whenever neccessary.

Dinner, however, passed by relatively uneventfully. They made polite conversation, while Karen and Ruth looked bored out of their mind, and Minnie kept Summer occupied with tales of their latest European holiday.

"Is Anna coming down for Christmas?" Bertie asked.

"Her and Hank." Suzanne nodded.

"Oh, good, I always liked Hank, such a nice boy and such a nice family." Minnie said. "Is he still working at his father's law firm?"

"I think he said he moved." Howard said. "He's been doing a lot of pro bono work."

"That's good of him." Stanley said. "And how's the tutoring going, Peggy? Are you enjoying it so far?"

"You bet she is." Vickie muttered, and Peggy gave her a swift kick to the shins under the table.

"Yes, it's very rewarding."

Across from Peggy, Howard raised his eyebrows at her, sharing a look with his wife who immediately lept into action.

"And what is it that you do, Summer?" Suzanne asked.

"Oh, I run a nudist colony."

All conversations immediately died and the only sound was Minnie's fork clattering on to her plate, as her face went ashen grey. Karen and Ruth were watching the others with confusion, while Vickie was straining to stifle a laugh and Suzanne's jaw had dropped so low it might as well have been on her plate.

Peggy didn't know what to say, or if she even should say anything. It was a concept completely unheard of only a few years ago but apparently not any longer. Still, it was hardly something to openly admit to when first meeting your boyfriend's parents, especially when they were quite clearly not of the liberal persuasion. But by Bertie's self-satisfied look she was guessing this was the reaction he was going for.

"Who wants dessert?" Minnie loudly asked, having seemingly recovered from the shock, and Karen and Ruth piped up in equally loud agreeance.

"But how does that make any money?" Stanley mused, more to himself than to Summer, but Minnie hurriedly gestured at him to drop the subject.

They ate their dessert with no more talk of nudism, which was probably a good thing because it might've given her grandmother a heart attack. Instead, Minnie talked about her latest charitable project, then Stanley droned on about his work, leaving no opportunity for Summer to drop anymore bombshells.

Once the plates had been cleared away they were led back into the sitting room, although Howard slipped out of the room and Peggy quickly followed, eager to get away from the tension. She found her father on the back patio, sitting at the table smoking a cigarette.

"I thought you quit?" She asked, taking the seat opposite him.

"I have, just needed something to ease the stress." He replied, pressing the butt of the cigarette into the ashtray. "D'you wanna tell me about why you and Vickie were playing footsies under the table?"

Peggy smiled, ruefully. "You noticed, huh?"

"We all did, wasn't exactly subtle." He said. "Is Curly the one you were out late with last week?"

Without meaning to, she blushed. "Yes, but it's not like that, we're not like that."

"It's okay, I was young once too, you're allowed your teenaged romances."

"And how many girlfriends did you have before mom?" She asked, indignantly.

Howard chuckled at her. "We weren't kids when we got married, Peg, there were others."

"But none of them mattered after you met mom?"

"O'course, and no one else has mattered since." He said. "So, you and Curly?"

It was an excellent questiom but one without any clear answer.

"I don't really know if there is a me and Curly." She said. "I think he likes me, and I like him, even though I know I shouldn't, and that anything between us will probably never last."

"So what if it doesn't, not everything lasts forever. And relationships don't have to last forever to be intensely meaningful."

That wasn't really how girls were raised to think. A well-bred girl dated to marry, she didn't date simply for the sake of it. It's what she'd once thought, or close enough to it, even if she hadn't learnt it from her parents. But maybe how things used to be done wasn't how she should do them.

"Do you think Uncle Bertie's actually dating Summer, or is she an actress he's paid to come here tonight?"

"God, I hope so." Howard said. "Wouldn't surprise me, he'd do anything to drive your grandparents mad."

That had been true for as long as Peggy could remember, though she never entirely understood why Bertie simply wouldn't play nice. He'd moved halfway across the country to escape his parents yet he still persisted in tormenting them every chance he could. Even if he had good reasons for his dislike - which she was sure he did - it wouldn't kill him to once a year pretend that things were okay.

Howard got up from his chair, gesturing for her to do the same. "C'mon, let's go back inside and head home before the fireworks kick off."

Her mother must've had a similar idea since when they returned she was already readying the family to go, nervously watching her parents to see how close they were to losing it. Summer was oblivious to it all, but Bertie clearly knew a row was coming given he no longer looked like he was enjoying himself.

Undoubtedly, they did not leave Bertie to have a pleasant evening, but at least he hadn't had to try to explain what a nudist colony was to a seven-year-old like his sister had.

Thanksgiving was not nearly as eventful for Curly. He'd woken up late, spending the day watching television before going to Buck's. It wasn't nearly as full as usual but there was a decent crowd, and it was always a good place to drink.

By the time he left he was only a little tipsy, but something felt off. He wasn't sure if it was the place, or the people, or something else entirely. More like someone else. He'd been thinking about Peggy's half-hearted invitation all day, and had had half the mind to go to her grandparents just to see how she'd react. Not that he even knew where their house was.

He wondered if she waa still there. It was late, and she had younger siblings so he guessed not, but that didn't mean she was at her house. Not that it wasn't worth a look.

The street was quiet when he pulled up in front of Peggy's house. There were lights on inside, but the upstairs was dark. He had no idea which room was Peggy's, but given she'd seen him the night after the rumble he was guessing it was the one facing the street.

Attempting to be as quiet as possible, he made his way across the lawn, grabbing a handful of stones from the garden bed. It took a few tosses before he made contact since he was trying so damn hard not to break her window. He figured neither Peggy nor her parents would forgive him for that.

After a few more succesful throws he was close to giving up. He was making enough noise to wake her up, so either she wasn't in her room or she was ignoring him. Either seemed likely.

He was about to throw in the towel and admit defeat when the front door opened, but his heart dropped when it wasn't Peggy who stepped outside. Instead it was an older man, probably in his 40's. He was tall and barrel chested, with brown hair and blue eyes.

The man, who he assumed was Peggy's father, eyed him up cautiously. Curly clenched his jaw as he neared, his whole body stiffening.

"You know we have a door." He said. "A phone too. You can call if you want to speak to Peggy."

When Curly didn't reply the man smiled slightly. "Do you want me to get her for you?"

"No." Curly blurted out.

"Do you plan on climbing up to her room then? Not sure how'd you do it without breaking your neck."

"I wasn't planning on it?"

"Breaking your neck or breaking into my daughter's room?"

Curly shrugged. "Either."

The man seemed relieved by that. "This is probably the part where I ask you what you want with my daughter, Curly, isn't it?"

"How'd you know my name?"

"I hear things." He replied, opening his mouth to speak further but was interrupted by the door opening.

This time it was Peggy. She was in a silk nightgown not disimilar to the one he'd torn up, but this one a deep green, making her skin look even paler in the lamplight. His breath hitched at the sight of it.

Peggy's father gave him a knowing look, whispering something in her ear before returning inside, leaving them alone. He suddenly felt like an absolute idiot. It was stupid of him to show up on her doorstep like this, and even dumber of him to expect her to answer. But then she smiled and he couldn't think straight.

"What're you doing here?" She asked, coming to stand in front of him. "And throwing rocks at my window? It's romantic and all, but there are more effective ways of getting my attention."

"Yeah, your dad said." Curly said, rubbing the back of his neck with his palm. "He seems nice."

Certainly nicer than he'd expected. Curly had thought he'd call the cops on him, suspecting him of trying to steal something.

"He is."

Curly nodded, awkwardly. "You look nice."

"I'm in my pyjamas."

"I like your pyjamas." He replied. "You still got the other ones."

He was surprised when she'd nodded. Most people threw out clothes when they were unwearable, but he'd always guessed that Peggy was the sentimental kind.

"Glad to see you don't need to be patched up again." She said, and he chuckled.

The conversation trailed off after that, leaving them to watch each other. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail and he had the sudden urge to free it so he could run his hands through it. She looked beautiful. He'd never thought of many girls as beautiful but she was. Fresh-faced and gazing up at him with...he wasn't sure but it was doing all sorts of things to him.

"D'you wanna go somewhere?"

Peggy smiled sadly at him. "I can't right now." She told him. "We're watching a movie if you want to join us."

"You serious?" He asked, moving closer to her, reaching out his hand to grip her waist.

"Of course I am." She said, stepping into the embrace, settling her own hands on his chest.

Curly smiled, leaning his head down to rest against her shoulder. "Of course you are."

Peggy responded instantly, wrapping an arm around him to pull him closer, her head leaning against his. For a moment neither of them spoke, and he was lulled into a calm by the sound of her quick breaths. They were so close he could feel her shaking ever so slightly in his hands.

"You cold?" He asked, turning towards her ear so she could hear.

"A little." She replied. "Is something wrong?" She asked, waiting a beat before continuing. "You're not drunk are you?"

He had to be a little drunk to be acting like this, but he wasn't going to let her know that, he was liking this embrace too much to say anything to ruin it.

"No, baby." He said, nuzzling his nose into her neck. "Just wanted to see ya."

"Oh."

Peggy reached her hand up to run her fingers through his hair, just like she'd done when they kissed. If he hadn't already been drinking he thought he could've gotten drunk on that feeling.

"Curly," she whispered, her fingers stroking the back of his neck, "Come inside."

A part of him wanted to say yes, to let her take his hand and lead him into her house. But he knew what he would be walking into - a suspicious family who'd probably interrogate him for daring to so much as look at Peggy. It wouldn't be just them, and that's all he wanted right now.

Instead, he pressed a quick kiss to the hollow of her neck before stepping back out of her arms.

"Nah, got shit to do." He said, backing away, ignoring the disappointment on her face. "I'll be seeing you."


	24. Chapter 24

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty Four**

 _December 1968_

The Thanksgiving break may have been productive had Peggy not spent all her time thinking about Curly. First, she finally admitted that she liked him, then he had to go and turn up on her doorstep, kiss her, and leave. It was typical of him to have her mind spinning with even the smallest interaction.

Confronting him about it had been the plan, but so far she hadn't had the opportunity. Tutoring was cancelled after a leakage of hazardous chemicals in the lab sent them home early, and he hadn't come to school for the rest of the week. Peggy had considered going to his house but quickly decided against it. Another run-in with his brother was hardly conductive to her admitting her feelings to him.

The all consuming thoughts of Curly had even made her forget about Lori's birthday party until she was reminded at school on Friday, and was somehow roped into helping set up. And now she was standing in the corner of Lori's living room with Jane, not so subtly looking for Curly, who'd Lori had decided to invite. Peggy might've been mad at her friend for taking the initiative, if she wasn't annoyed at herself for failing to do so first.

"Relax, he'll notice you," Jane assured her. "Don't worry."

"He should, I look great tonight."

She'd worn her white blouse with the brown suede mini skirt that showed off more of her legs than anything else she owned. It would drive him mad, or at least she'd hoped given how often he looked at her legs. She'd even worn her hair down the way he liked it.

"Whatever, it doesn't matter." Peggy declared. "I'm going to have fun whether or not he shows up."

Jane gave her a skeptical look but said nothing. Even Peggy didn't believe her own words. Thanksgiving was enough of a confirmation that she needed to tell him how she felt, that not only did she like him but wanted to be with him. Whatever happened after that was up to him.

"Where's Robbie?" Peggy asked. "Thought he was coming tonight."

"Called me last night to say he couldn't make it."

"Did he say why?"

"Said he had a family dinner or something." Jane shrugged. "I'll see him tomorrow at the dance, you're still coming with us right?"

"Who wouldn't want to thirdwheel you and your boyfriend?"

If it wasn't her only option she probably wouldn't have chosen to go with Jane and Robbie, but Jennifer had her cousin's wedding and Lori anticipated being too hungover to bother doing herself up for the Winter Formal. She supposed she'd have to find someone to slow dance with or she'd end up awkwardly standing in the corner.

Jane elbowed Peggy in the side, jerking her head across the room. Following her line of sight, she saw him. He was sitting on the couch next to Jimmy, Mary Parker pressed up against his side but he barely paid her any attention. When their eyes met her heart skipped a beat, or maybe stopped beating altogether.

"Hey, Peggy," Lori called out, bounding towards her. "D'ya think you could get some more chips from the kitchen, I've gotta get more ice from the freezer?"

"Uh, yeah sure." She replied, forcing herself not to look at Curly as she weaved her way through the crowd.

Thankfully, the kitchen was empty so she didn't have to deal with any drunk party guests. She pulled the chip packets out of the cupboard, filling up the bowls that were stacked on the counter.

"Hey."

Peggy didn't need to look to see who the voice belonged to, the way it's sound sent shivers down her spine was enough of an answer.

"Hey." She replied. "Having a good time?"

"Yeah, good party." Curly said, and she glanced over her shoulder to see him making no effort to hide the fact he was checking her out. He hadn't dressed up for the occasion, except maybe making an effort to comb his hair, but she still found the way he casually leant against the wall to be strangely irresistible.

"Whatcha in here for?"

"We need more chips."

"Ain't it Lori's party?"

"Yeah, but it's her birthday, she should enjoy it." Peggy said, setting the bowls down on the island before leaning her back against it. "Besides, I like doing this stuff. I've been told that I like to mother people."

Curly raised his eyebrows, letting out a short chuckle.

"This the part where you tell me you like my mothering ways."

"Oh, I absolutely do. Nothing sexier."

"I think that was a bit much but I appreciate the effort."

She couldn't help the way her heart sped up when he called sexy, even if he were only joking. But she already knew he was attracted to her, he'd proved that enough times.

"So why won't we have tutoring next week?" Curly asked, and she frowned in response. "Got a note this week saying there's not going to be any tutoring until after the break."

"I'm going away with my family."

"For Christmas?"

"Just before Christmas, smaller crowds." She said. "My grandparents are taking us to Whistler."

"Where's that?"

"Canada. They built the site to try and win the bid for the olympics. It failed, but the resort's quite nice."

"What'd you do there?"

"My family will be skiing. My grandparents will be indoors. I think if my grandfather tried to ski he'd slip a disk." She said. "It's a shame my sister's bringing a friend, otherwise I could've brought you as my plus one, watch you fall on your butt."

"I have great balance."

"Oh, I don't doubt it." She said, with melodramatic reverence.

Curly shook his head with laughter, eyeing her up as he pushed himself off the wall, moving to stand beside her, his back resting against the island. "How was your Thanksgiving?"

"My Uncle brought his nudist girlfriend with him. Thankfully she wore clothing, though she did forget her shoes and bra."

He raised his eyebrows in surprise. "A nudist?"

"Apparently. Though, it's still not as bad as the year my grandparent's cat jumped on the table and died in the middle of potato salad."

"In the potato salad?"

"He jumped into it to eat it, and then had an aneurysm while chowing down."

"Decent way to go."

"He was already in Heaven." She replied. "How was your Thanksgiving?"

Curly shrugged. "Boring."

"Right." She said, slyly. "I wasn't sure if you'd come tonight."

"Lori was very insistent. Said you wanted me to come." He said. "Do you, want me here?"

"Maybe." She said, making a point of not looking at him.

With a sudden surge of confidence she reached her hand out to brush against his, the mere feeling of his skin on hers enough to send sparks shooting up her arm. When he didn't pull away she slipped her fingers in between his, so their knuckles were gripping each other but they weren't technically holding hands.

Neither of them commented on the development. Peggy chanced a glance up at Curly, who was watching her with a mix of confusion and amusement, taking a sip of his beer. His hot gaze caused her cheeks to burn and she quickly looked away, but she could still feel his eyes on her.

"Peggy," He said, his voice hoarse but somehow soothing. "What're you doing?"

"I'm holding your hand." She replied, as if it were obvious, which it kind of was. "D'you want me to stop?"

Finally, she looked back at him, trying to appear as seductively innocent as she could. Anything if it meant he didn't push her away.

"No."

"Good."

"How's that?"

"Because I like holding your hand."

It was a simple statement but it seemed to light a fire in Curly's eyes, pinning her to the spot with the intensity of their look. She could feel a similar fire burning inside her, a passion he'd lit multiple times, a passion she'd never even realised she was capable of.

Slowly, he lifted up their joined hands, pressing a searing kiss to the back of her hand while his eyes never left hers.

"Very gallant of you, Mr Darcy."

"Who?" Curly frowned.

Peggy blushed, mumbling, "It's just a book reference."

"Right."

Curly shot her one of those dazzling grins of his and she lost every single train of thought she had all at once. She was vaguely aware of his head dipping down, inching closer to hers, his eyes drifting to her lips.

"Hey, Peggy, have you got," Lori called out, stopping dead in the doorway when she realised what she was walking in on. "Oh, sorry."

"Ah, yeah I've got the bowls right here,"

"I'll take them." Lori offered, looking at the two of them with excitement, and Peggy could've sworn she saw her wink at her before leaving the kitchen.

"Sorry 'bout that." She said, her heart still racing from their close proximity. "Why don't we go somewhere more private?"

Curly nodded, and she led him out of the kitchen, skirting around the edge of the living room to reach the hallway. Even with her back to him she could tell he was confused when she opened one of the doors, letting him into the bedroom before shutting it behind him.

It had been awhile since she'd been in Lori's room and the layout had changed. Now the bed was pressed against the wall in front of where the door opened, the wardrobe was on the opposite side and a dresser was pressed against the wall closest to them. The theme had changed too, now a green and blue colour scheme, though it most likely had changed multiples times given how fickle Lori was when it came to decoration.

Curly was watching her, waiting for her to explain why she'd pulled him into a bedroom. But she wasn't ready to answer that question, or for what that answer would entail.

"I painted that." She announced, pointing at the canvas that hung above the dresser. It was the one constant of the room, no matter what the colour scheme was the painting stayed.

"It's good." He replied. "I didn't know you painted."

"I don't much anymore." She admitted. "My mom's a painter, I guess I always just compared myself to her."

Out of the corner of her eye she could see him smile as he shook his head at her, a warm expression on his face. He stepped forward, lifting up his hand to bury his fingers in her hair at the nape of her neck. His face was so close to hers that she could feel his breath on her cheek, but still she couldn't look at him and see that familiar fire burning in his eyes. She didn't trust herself enough.

"Why'd your bring me in here?"

"Why'd you come to my house the other night?"

Curly shrugged. "I wanted to see you, like I said."

"Do you always just do what you want?"

"Pretty much." He replied. "You should try it sometime."

"Why'd you kiss me?" She asked, turning to face him.

"Because I wanted to kiss you. Do I need a better reason?" He asked, dropping his hand back to his side. "Why are we here, Peggy?"

It was a good question, and one she couldn't keep avoiding. Peggy leant into him, brushing her hand against his, tilting her head up so their wanting gazes met. She took a deep breath to steady herself. It was now or never.

"I wanted to talk to you alone, to tell you, that I," she trailed off, momentarily lost in his eyes. "That I like your stupid face, and your stupid smile, and your stupid leather jacket, and your stupid everything."

Once she started speaking the words just kept coming, everything she'd been holding in for longer than she was willing to admit. Curly didn't respond immediately, but the way he was looking at her almost broke her heart, that soft expression that looked almost unnatural on him.

"This is the part where you say you like my stupid everything."

Curly chuckled. "Shit, I can't get enough of your stupid everything."

"Really?"

He answered by kissing her, soft and slow, like he was savouring every moment of it, burning it into his memory. Curly moved to cup her face, his hands warm against her already hot cheeks, as he pulled back, resting his forehead against hers. For a moment she was too dazed to open her eyes, too caught up in what had just happened. She'd played out this moment in her mind over and over again, but reality far surpassed any of her expectations.

Then their eyes met, and there it was, that blazing fire in his eyes she was now sure reflected her own. He was watching her with a hungry expression and she arched herself into him expectantly. He smirked slightly, grabbing her around the waist and pulling her against him, his lips descending on hers, this time feverish and fervent.

In a rushed effort to press his body against hers he almost slammed her into the wall, causing a picture frame to fall off the dresser beside them. Curly muttered a quick apology, but she was much too preoccupied with him to be worried about anything else, including the slight throbbing of the back of her head that would probably precede a headache.

Peggy reached up and grabbed a fistful of his t-shirt, pulling him closer still, if that was even possible. There was no distance between them now, just two bodies almost merged into one. His lips left hers, trailing down her jaw towards her the soft skin of her neck where he'd kissed her only a week ago.

Using his knee he pushed her legs apart to make way for his body and she eagerly obliged, his hands tightly gripping her waist. She wasn't sure what to do with her hands, or any other part of her really. His lips were so expertly pressed against her that she felt like an absolute fool for how clueless she was.

"Sorry," she whispered, "I don't know what to do."

Curly chuckled into her neck. "That's okay baby, you just gotta give in to it."

Taking his advice she slipped her hands under his shirt, splaying them out against his chest. Her fingers were cold against his warm skin, seeking out the scar on his abdomen, drifting over it. Curly tensed under her fingers, halting his kisses to her neck.

"Is that okay?" She whispered. "D'you want me to stop or,"

"No." He quickly objected, meeting her eyes with an ardent expression on his face.

Peggy's hands moved upwards, pushing the shirt up along with them. Curly quickly accomodated her, tugging the shirt over his head and tossing it away. Leaning forward, she pressed a soft kiss to the skin above his heart.

"You drive me so fucking crazy, you know that right?" He told her, a lopsided grin on his face.

"Good." She replied, with more confidence than she thought she had.

Curly kept his eyes on hers as his hands slipped down her waist, cupping her butt in both hands and giving it a squeeze. Her own hands were gripping his shoulders, his dark eyes sending her heart into spasms but she refused to look away.

Instead, she kissed him. This one was slower than the others, less hurried but no less passionate. Curly's hands dropped further down, grabbing ahold of her thighs and effortlessly lifting her up.

Without thinking about it, she wrapped her legs around his waist, clinging to him as he carried her across the room, setting her down on the bed. They broke apart for a moment. Curly hovered over her as they watched each other, his eyes trailing across her body. It should've made her squirm or want to retreat but instead it emboldened her. He wanted her in all the ways she wanted him, all the ways they'd both wanted each other for so long but had never voiced those desires.

He frowned at her slightly, and she was about to ask what was wrong when he whispered, "You're so fucking beautiful."

"You're not half bad yourself." She replied, slipping her arms around his neck as he lowered his lips to hers.

"You know I'm more than that." He said, his hands drifting to the buttons of her blouse.

Once he undid the top few buttons his lips replaced his fingers, pressing hot kisses to her chest, his hands palming her breasts through her shirt. She lifted one hand to the back of his head, tangling it into his hair, while the other tightly gripped his shoulder. Undoing another button, his lips skimmed over the top of her bra, sucking at the skin of her breast. Peggy let out a soft moan, arching her back into him, her fingers digging into his skin.

With the final button undone he pushed her shirt open, the cold air pricking at her skin but she was too distracted but his mouth making it's way over her stomach to notice. She clutched at his shoulder with desperation, tightening her leg's grip around him. The feeling of him so close, his tongue against her skin, had her mind clouded by desire. It was all him. Nothig else mattered except for the two of them.

It was only when his hand slipped beneath her skirt that sense returned to her.

"Curly, we can't,"

"Huh,"

"We can't have sex in my best friend's bed."

"The floor then." He suggested with a wolfish grin that did not subside when she shot him a disapproving look. "D'you wanna go back to the party then?"

It was the sensible thing to do. There wouldn't be much opportunity to tear each other's clothes off if they were surrounded by people, but she didn't want to be around anyone else right now. It felt so right, being here with him, that she couldn't bring herself to leave. They could stay in this little bubble for a little while longer.

Peggy shook her head. "I want to stay here with you."

"But no sex?" He asked. "Just kissing then?"

That would only lead them right back to where they'd just been. Better to play it safe and avoid anymore temptation.

"Or we could talk." She offered, chuckling at him. "Or don't you do talking with a girl who you're not just friends with?"

"Not when she's half naked."

"I'm not half naked," she objected. "More like a quarter naked."

"Naked enough."

Curly raked his eyes over her as he shifted upwards, causing her breath to hitch in her throat. Even though she felt like she couldn't breath her chest heaved slightly, drawing his eye, a dangerous glint in them.

"I like your bra." He had to be teasing because it was only a black bra, nothing special. When his hand slid further up her thigh, pushing her skirt along with it, she knew he was teasing her, just in a different way. "Is it a matching set?"

"Curly." She warned, though her tone was playful. "You're toeing the line."

"Ain't I always?"

"Yeah, I know, it's what I like about you."

"I would've thought it'd make you crazy?"

"It does." She admitted. "But it's a good kind of crazy. Most of the time."

Curly pulled his hand out from under her skirt, tracing his fingers along the material to where the ends of her shirt were still haphazardly tucked into it. She kept her eyes on his face as he fiddled with the bottom button, not looking at her.

It was clear that he was fighting every urge he had to rip her clothes off, and she was fighting every urge to let him. But it was not okay to have sex in your best friend's bed withour her permission, let alone with a guy who wasn't even technically her boyfriend. Though, he could easily be, if she only said the words.

"Curly,"

"Hm," he replied, his fingers now making their way across her stomach, the feeling of them softly drifting over her skin causing an involuntary giggle to escape her lips.

"That tickles." She said, wrapping her arms around his neck to pull him closer, their chests now pressed together.

Curly smiled into the kiss he pressed to her shoulder, resting his forehead in the crook of her neck. His body was heavy on top of hers but she liked the feeling. She slipped one of her hands around his waist, her fingers tracing circles into his back, while she ran her fingers through his hair with her other hand.

"You're so beautiful, baby." He whispered into her neck.

"You said that already."

"I meant it."

"Don't go falling asleep or anything." She said. "I don't want to be trapped underneath you until Lori decides to go to bed."

She felt him smile against her skin. "I won't promise anything."

They stayed like that for awhile, his face buried in her neck and her arms wrapped around him. The faint sound of music blaring reminded her that there was a party going on, her best friend's party, but that all seemed so far away. All she could think about was Curly. The feeling of his skin against, the way he tasted like beer and smoke, how he made her inside's burn.

It was probably wrong to be stretched out half naked on someone's else bed with an equally half naked man on top of you. But for the life of her she couldn't find it in her to care. She shoud've, and had it been anyone else she probably would have left already, but it was Curly, and that made all the difference.

"You smell good." He said, his breath hot against her skin.

"You smell like cigarettes."

"That a bad thing?"

"Smoking them is."

She didn't want to admit that she liked the way he smelled just because it was _his_ smell, that mix of cigarette smoke and old leather.

"Is this you mothering me?"

Peggy turned her head towards his. "Still find it sexy?"

"Incredibly."

"I think our current position is clouding your objectivity."

"Maybe."

"Curly," she said, admonishingly, reaching up to grip his chin in between her fingers. "You can't fall asleep."

"Fine." He grumbled, rolling off of her and onto his side, draping his arm across her. "Why'd your uncle bring a nudist for Thanksgiving?"

"To make my grandparents mad." She explained, reaching out to intertwine their fingers. "Neither my mother nor my uncle could exactly be considered the golden child. I think my uncle's spent most of his adult life punishing his parents for being disappointed in him."

Curly nodded, absentmindedly stroking his thumb over hers as he listened intently to what she was saying.

"We only go there every second year, so it's not too bad." She continued. "But it's better when it's just us at our house. Well, us and Uncle Milton."

"Eyeball guy?"

"That's the one." She said, surprised that he remembered. "What's the best Thanksgiving you've ever had?"

Curly frowned in contemplation, and she was about to take the question back when he spoke. "When I was a kid, not sure how old, my dad took me and Tim to a baseball game. It was only a minor league game, but it was still good. Course, that was 'fore he left."

"I'm sorry, I didn't know."

Not that she would've had any reason to, Curly wasn't especially forthcoming when it came to his family. Still, she felt like it was something she should've known.

"It's okay." He shrugged, nonchalantly, but his furrowed brow gave away his real feelings.

"No, it's not, and you don't have to act like it is." She objected. "It's his loss anyway."

"Guess so."

Peggy smiled encouragingly at him. "Maybe you can come next year and meet Uncle Milton."

Curly didn't answer. Instead, he kissed her. It was only short, and he'd pulled away before she could really savour the moment, but it was enough to send her head spinning. He smirked like he knew what she was thinking. _This_ _boy_ _was_ _going_ _to_ _send_ _her_ _crazy_.

Shaking her head at him, she reached her hands up to his chest to push him over onto his back. Leaning over him, she captured his lips in a desperate kiss. Curly was slow to react. He clearly hadn't expected her to be so forward, but he soon gripped her waist to pull her closer, so she took that as a good sign.

When she pulled back he was looking her with a half dazed expression. She leant forward to press her forehead against his, her hands splayed out on his chest.

"You do not get to kiss me to avoid talking about too emotionally intimate things and then not kiss me properly."

"Duly noted." He replied, staring up at her in surprise.

"It's getting late, we should probably head back to the party." She said, keeping her eyes on him as she sat up, which made rebuttoning her shirt more difficult than it should've been.

"Guess so." He replied, only making a move to get up when she raised her eyebrows. "You're a killjoy, you know that right."

"I'm aware."

Peggy watched him lean out to grab his t-shirt from the ground without actually getting up from the bed. Maybe he thought if he didn't leave the bed he'd somehow convince her to stay a little longer. She smiled at the thought.

They'd spent the last hour kissing, cuddling and almost having sex, and yet she was no closer to figuring out what _they_ were. She couldn't leave this room without knowing if he felt the same way about her, without hearing him say it.

Crawling forward, she stretched her arm in between Curly's, reaching out to grasp his shoulder as she pressed a quick kiss to his neck.

"Curly," she said, looking up at those eyes that sent chills down her spine and made her toes curl, "D'you - "

She never got to finish the sentence since someone decided to barge into the room at that very moment. Her first instinct was to scream at them to get out but then she turned. Michael stood in the doorway, a drunken Mary Parker clinging at his arm but he looked incredibly sober as he took in Curly's shirtless state and her untucked blouse. He was looking at her with such vitriol that she could've melted into the ground.

"Michael," she said, but he didn't give her a chance to continue before storming out of the bedroom.

Jumping up from the bed, she raced after him. Weaving through the crowd she followed him out onto the lawn, well away from any partygoers. He was refusing to look at her despite her calling his name.

"Michael, that,"

"What? It wasn't what it looked like. Nothing between you, huh," Michael said, derisively. "What else did you lie to me about?"

"I never lied to you about Curly, and I'm sick of having to repeat myself."

"Sorry if I don't exactly take your word for it." He said, shaking his head at her in disgust. "You know, I always knew you weren't that into me, but I never figured you'd slum it with some no-good hood."

"Don't call him that." She snapped. "You don't even know him. This is nothing but your pathetic ego talking."

"My ego?" He asked, indignantly.

"Yes. Your ego." She said, jabbing her finger at him. "And what were you planning on doing in the bedroom?"

"That's none of your business."

"Then whatever Curly and I do or don't do is none of yours."

"Whatever," he scoffed, turning his back on her. "You're not worth it anyway."

Peggy could've stamped her foot or shrieked after him. Instead, she grabbed the newspaper from the ground she flung it through the air straight towards Michael's back. It hit him with a loud thud, and he whipped around, lookinh at her like she was crazy.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" He demanded.

"You're an asshole." She shrieked. "And a hypocrite. And I can't believe I ever wasted my breath apologising to you."

Not waiting for more hate to spill out of his mouth, she retreated back inside. No one noticed her entry, or the fact her eyes were beginning to water. Slipping past the partygoers she returned to the room only to find it empty, and when she scanned the crowd Curly was nowhere to be seen.

Michael had to go and ruin such a perfect moment with his stupid jealousy. Who knew what Curly would think of her now, nothing good that's for sure. This was supposed to be the night they finally got past all the bullshit. The tears were threatening to spill now, and her hands were shaking.

"Peggy," Jane called out, pushing past people to get to her side. "Are you okay?"

"I think I need to go home." She whispered and Jane nodded, disappearing for a moment only to reappear with their bags and jackets.

Once they were in the car she didn't even try to stop herself from bursting into tears.


	25. Chapter 25

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to its rightful owners**

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty Five**

 _December 1968_

The gym was decorated with blue and white streamers, a hand-painted banner hanging on one of the walls and each of the tables covered in a snowflake printed tablecloth. The decorations were no less ugly than they were every year, and Curly wondered if the person who chosen them was blind or just had no taste.

If only it was the poor decour that had him in such a bad mood, and not the girl sitting at a table across the room with a sad expression on her face. Like she had a right to be sad when the entire situation was entirely her fault. Of course she'd run back to Michael when shit hit the fan, leaving him sitting there alone like the idiot he was for thinking she actually liked him back.

Still, she looked beautiful in her blue dress, though the neckline was too high for his liking. Her hair was out the way she'd taken to having it ever since he told her he liked it. His fingers tingled at the memory of running them through her hair, and he had the sudden urge to do it again, to pull her against him, feel their bodies so close together it was as if they'd merged into one.

"You gonna ask her to dance or what?" Ponyboy asked, pulling him out of his fantasies.

"Who?"

"Peggy." Ponyboy replied. "You know, the girl you can't stop staring at."

"I ain't staring."

"Whatever." Ponyboy scoffed in disbelief.

Curly grumbled to himself, but couldn't deny that he'd thought about doing just that. He wanted to touch her again, to look into those eyes of hers and feel his stomach twist itself into knots. But he couldn't get his hopes up if all she was going to do was push him away.

When Rose approached their table he was thankful for the distraction. "You come here for a dance?" He asked. "Don't see my brother 'round anywhere."

"I think coming to a high school dance might literally kill him." Rose said, taking the seat beside him.

Ponyboy leant across him towards Rose. "Curly can't dance with ya cause he's too busy mooning over Peggy."

"Am not." Curly objected.

Rose raised her eyebrows at him. "Did you kiss her again?"

Again. And again, and again, and then again. But he didn't want to share the details with them.

"Maybe."

"Shit, I didn't even know you kissed her once." Ponyboy said. "Is that why she keeps looking over here?"

"She ain't looking."

"Yes she is." Rose confirmed. "She's looking right now."

Curly couldn't help but check for himself, his eyes finding hers without even having to search, they were just drawn to wherever she was. She smiled slightly like this was what she'd been waiting for. It must've been because she said something to her friend before getting up from her chair.

"Shit," he muttered.

Against his better judgment, he watched her walk across the gym, coming to stand in front of their table.

"Hi."

"Hey." Curly replied. He wanted to say something to make it less awkward but all he wanted to do was ask her about the previous night. Instead, he crossed his arms across his chest and slumpt down in the chair.

"Well, ah," she stumbled, her eyes flickering between the three of them before settling on him. "Do you wanna dance?"

"Yes." Rose answered for him, elbowing him in the ribs to get up.

Curly swore at her under his breath, but got up anyway. As they made their way to the dancefloor, Peggy kept glancing back at him like she was scared he might run away and he'd be lying if he said the thought hadn't crossed his mind.

They settled for a spot on the edge of the dancefloor, Curly placing his hands on her waist while hers linked around his neck. With her heels they were almost at eye-level, which would make avoiding her questioning looks all that more difficult. There was more distance between them than the last time they'd danced. It was probably a good thing. The memory of last night was too vivid is his mind to have her pressed against him in public.

"How've you been?" She asked.

"Fine. You?"

"Fine, I guess."

For once the silence between them was heavy, and not in the good way. She kept her eyes on his face, but he avoided her gaze, looking anywhere but at her. If he did he'd forget why he was mad at her.

"You look nice."

"Thank you." She said. "I couldn't wear the dress I was planning on wearing because someone decided to give me a hickey."

Curly smirked, his eyes drifting down to her chest where his lips had been less than twenty four hours ago. He cocked his head at her, causing her to blush but not to look away.

"You come alone?"

"No." She said, and he raised an eyebrow, wondering where she got a date from so quickly, or if she already had one last night. "Well, yes, as in I don't have a date. I'm third wheeling Jane and her boyfriend, d'you know him, Robbie Armstrong?"

He couldn't help but smile as she ranted, satisfied in the knowledge that he made her this nervous. The fact that she'd come alone and was dancing with him just made it better, and had they not been at school he would've pulled her close, forgiven everything if she'd only kiss him.

Peggy didn't wait for answer before continuining. "They've been together for years, so I've sufficiently third wheeled them enough that it's not totally awkward anymore. I introduced them actually, he's friends with...Michael."

That was all the reminder Curly needed to put a stop to any fantasies about getting her alone. If she wasn't looking up at him with such guilty eyes he would've walked away. _Just this one dance_ , he promised himself.

She watched him as they swayed in silence, his eyes staring over her shoulder. It was hard not to give in and meet her gaze, especially when that was what he so desperately wanted, and he could feel his resolve crumbling with every passing second.

"Curly, about last night,"

But whatever poor excuse she was about to say turned into a gasp when someone bumped into them, spilling their drink down Peggy's side.

"Oh shit, sorry." Todd Doherty said, though he didn't look very sorry by the slight chuckle, and Curly suspected that his buddy Michael put him up to it.

"Excuse me." Peggy whispered, running through the crowd towards the bathroom.

Once she was out of earshot, Curly shoved Todd's chest causing him to stumble. "The fuck's your problem?"

"It was an accident."

"Really? Didn't look like one."

"Hey," a voice called out, an accompanying hand grabbing ahold of his elbow and jerking him around.

"Hey." He objected when he saw that it was Rose who intervened.

"Go to her." Rose told him. "It'll mean more to her than you beating that idiot up."

"I wasn't gonna do it for her."

Rose simply raised her eyebrows at him, turning on her heel and leaving him standing on the dancefloor alone. Todd was nowhere to be seen, probably ran off to get his buddies to gang up on him later, like the fucking coward he was. Maybe Curly would be the one to corner him, teach him a lesson on how to treat women. Peggy would probably hate it, tell him that it wasn't worth a fight. But it was, _she_ was, even if he still wasn't over what she'd done.

Skirting the outside of the dancefloor, he pushed through the gym doors and walked out into the empty hallway. He couldn't see Peggy, but he assumed she'd gone into the bathroom, so he braced himself against the wall. It was pathetic of him to be waiting for her when she was the one who kept running away. Everyone had always thought he was fickle, but he had nothing on Peggy. One second she was throwing herself at him and the next she was pushing him away.

Curly was about to leave and forget all about Peggy when the bathroom door opened, and she stepped out, Jane following close behind. He wondered if she'd already been in the bathroom or had followed Peggy, if it were the latter then she'd probably been watching them dance. Peggy stopped when she saw him, her puffy eyes wide and he wondered if she'd been crying.

"You alright?" He asked, shoving his hands into his pockets.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She replied, though she didn't sound it. "You waited out here for me."

Curly shrugged. "Guess so. Thought you might want a ride."

"That'd be nice." She replied, turning to Jane beside her. "Is that alright?"

Jane regarded him skeptically for a moment. "Yeah, no problem." She replied, saying goodbye to Peggy and handing her her purse before leaving them alone in the hallway.

Curly pushed himself off of the wall, coming to stand in front of Peggy, waiting for...something, he wasn't sure. Maybe an apology, or an explanation, or for her to throw herself into his arms. All of the above sounded good to him.

"You sure you wanna drop me home?" She asked. "I don't want to ruin your night."

"Nah, you ain't ruining anything."

Peggy smiled at that. "Let's go then."

Twirling on her foot, she strode down the hallway. Curly took a moment to admire her fading figure, which meant he had to jog to catch up with her.

"What took you so long?" She asked, as they pushed through the doors leading into the parking lot.

Peggy turned to face him so that she was walking backwards, watching him with mischevious eyes. It was the same look she'd given him at Buck's. He'd thought she was being accidentally seductive then, but there was nothing accidental now.

"Nothing."

"Oh." She replied, her voice deflated slightly as she wrapped her arms around herself.

"Here." He said, shrugging off his jacket and handing it to her.

"I don't wanna get coke on it."

"Don't worry about." He assured. "I've probably already spilled beer on it enough times."

"Thanks." She said, pulling on the jacket.

Peggy was tall enough that it didn't swallow her up, only looking like she'd bought a jacket a few sizes too big. For a moment he stared, the sight of her in his clothes doing odd things to his stomach, and she raised her eyebrows at him.

"You look good in it."

"I like it. It's warm and smells like you."

Peggy didn't wait for him to respond before getting in the car. It was probably for the best. The only reply he could of think of was to kiss her, and he had to stop thinking about kissing her or else he'd actually do it.

When he joined her in the car he didn't put his arm around her like a part of him wanted to, the part that had already forgiven her. But that was only a small part, the rest of him was confused as all hell. She was sitting closer than he would've liked given this confliction.

Neither of them spoke for awhile. He could feel her sending him sideways glances, but if she wanted conversation out of him then she had to start talking about last night. He had a pretty good idea why she split - the same reason she'd been pushing him away this whole time - she was embarrassed that she had feelings for a no-good-hood like him. Everything was fine when it was just the two of them, but Curly had no intention of hiding how he felt about her, never had.

"Did you enjoy the dance?" She finally said.

Curly shrugged. "It's alright, I guess. You?"

"Up until my dress getting ruined."

"Todd's such an asshole."

"It was probably an accident."

"No, it wasn't." Curly objected, his hands gripping the steering wheel tightly.

Peggy went silent for a moment, her gaze dropping to her hands folded in her lap. "I suppose it wasn't, was it."

Only then did she look up and notice they weren't heading towards her house. "Where are we going?"

"Thought we'd get something to eat, I'm starving, you?"

"Yeah, I am."

What the fuck was he thinking, taking her out to eat when he was pissed at her? But the only other alternative was to take her home and he couldn't do that. He needed an explanation, even if it was a shitty one.

Slowly, Peggy reached her hand across the seat to where his rested, slipping her fingers through his. For a moment he let himself enjoy the feeling of her skin on his, but then he pulled away.

"You can't do that, Peggy."

"What? Hold your hand?"

"No, act like last night didn't happen." He corrected. "Like everything's good between us."

There was silence between them now. An angry, sullen, resentful silence. Curly almost had some twisted gratification from the idea she was hurt by the rejection, now she could feel what he'd been feeling. But another part of him couldn't bear the idea of hurting her.

"I looked for you, afterwards, but I couldn't find you." She said. "Why'd you leave?"

"Cause you ran after him Peggy, like he was still your boyfriend or something, like we're not..."

"Like we're not what?"

"It doesn't matter, we're not anything." He said. "You've made sure of that."

Curly didn't mean to sound so bitter but damn it he was bitter. She'd shot him down everytime he'd tried to make them into something more, and there was only so many times before he'd take the hint.

"Maybe you wanna make out with me but you sure as shit don't wanna date me."

It was a good thing he was driving, or else he'd actually have to look at her and see the effect of his words. He was expecting her to yell, scream, throw accusations at him and demand he take her home.

Instead, she mumbled, "You're still going to the diner?"

"I'm still hungry."

There was that silence again, perhaps less hostile, more filled with waiting and a sense of something unfinished. That pretty much summed up their entire relationship.

"I was about to ask you out."

"When?"

"Yesterday. Right before Michael barged in, that's what I was trying to say." She said. "I'm sorry for hurting you, I didn't mean to. I just wanted to see if he was okay, and then come straight back to you."

"You were really gonna ask me out?"

"Of course. I told you last night, I like you, _like_ like you," she said. "I like you, Curly Shepard. I want you, and only you. Not Michael, not anyone else."

Curly didn't even try to stop himself from smiling. This was what he'd wanted to hear for weeks, ever since he'd kissed her, maybe before that if he were honest. It was a good thing he had to turn into the parking lot of the diner to keep him from staring at her and probably crashing the car.

Instead, he merely glanced sideways to find her watching him with a hopeful expression. "Do you want me too?"

He could've laughed, almost did. How could she not know how much he wanted her? That every part of him ached for her in not only a sex way but a way he didn't quite understand. Except for the fact all he wanted to do was make her smile, that the sight of it drove him mad, that he spent too much time thinking about it. Thinking about her.

"Baby, I've never wanted anyone else this much."

He didn't need to see her reaction to feel the atmosphere shift. Everything suddenly felt amplified, the car was too small but there was too much space between them, and yet he could feel the heat of her gaze on him.

"Curly, pull the car over."

"Why?"

"Cause I can't kiss you when you're driving."

Haphazardly pulling into a parking spot in the back corner, Curly barely had time to stop the car before Peggy's lips were on his. They were hungry and desperate but somehow loving, like she was pouring all of her pent up feelings into this one kiss. He wrapped his arms around her as she slid onto his lap, one hand tangling in her hair while the other gripped her waist.

Peggy settled her hands against him, running them up and down his chest. He wondered if she'd stick them up his shirt since she seemed to be making a habit of it. Instead, she trailed her lips across his jawline and down his neck.

He tightened his grip around her in response, pulling her further into the embrace. Tilting his head to the side to give her better access, her lips moved futher down, and she pulled the collar of his shirt aside, sucking at the skin near his collarbone.

"Tryin' make us even are ya?" He chuckled, moving his hands to grip her thighs.

Peggy swiftly pulled back as if she'd just remembered something. "Do you wanna go out with me?"

Curly looked up at her through hooded eyes. "Huh?"

"A date." She clarified. "Do you wanna take me out?"

"Course I do."

Peggy let out a noise that sounded almost like a giggle, leaning back to watch him, her eyes scanning his face like she wanted to memorise it. Not that she needed to, he wasn't going anywhere anytime soon.

"I love your eyes."

"My eyes?"

"Yeah, your eyes. I think they're my favourite colour." She told him. "I could get lost in those eyes. I think about them all the time."

"How often?"

"Too often." She admitted. "I think about you too often, it's distracting."

Curly chuckled at her. "Did someone spike the punch or something?"

"Oh, I'm painfully sober, baby." She said, taking his face in her hands. "Just crazy about you."

He lifted up one of his hands to wrap around hers, pressing a kiss into her palm. The way she smiled back at him knocked the wind out of his lungs. She looked like this was the happiest damn moment of her life, like he'd made her the happiest she'd ever been.

"I want you, to be with you, and I need you to know what that means." She said, her thumb absentmindedly tracing over his cheek. "I don't want to take things slowly, or just wait and see what this, because I know what this is and I'm done waiting. I want us to be together."

Everything was quiet as she waited for his response, her hopeful expression fading with every second of silence. He wanted to tell her what she wanted to hear, that he'd give her the whole damn world if she'd only ask. But he couldn't lie to her, not when she'd spilled her guts to him.

"I ain't got no money, baby, I can't take you out to fancy restaurants, or buy you gifts, or any of that shit." He said. "I can't give you anything."

Peggy's eyes lit up as she leant forward to rest her forehead against his. "You're the only thing I want. Can you give me that?"

Curly grinned, twirling a strand of her hair around his finger. "I think I can."

She practically squealed, pressing a quick kiss to his lips, and he chuckled at her. All he could think of was how pretty she looked, staring at him with her bright blue eyes and an even brighter smile.

"D'you wanna go get food?" She asked. "We can eat it in the car. It's not like it's the cleanest anyway."

"You dissin' my car?"

"No, just your hygiene habits."

Curly was left cold when she climbed off of his lap, and he quickly wrapped his arm around her shoulders to prevent her moving away from him. She chuckled slightly, curling into his side. Pulling out of the parking spot, he drove up to the drivethrough, giving his order before turning to Peggy.

"Whadda want? Strawberry milkshake?"

"Yeah, thanks."

"Anything else?"

"Oh, I'm not hungry."

"But you said you were starving."

Peggy shrugged. "I wanted to spend more time with you."

If he hadn't been driving he would've kissed her, damn near almost did. He needed to get himself under control or else he'd spend all his time kissing her, not that that was such a bad idea. The food in his lap was probably the only thing stopping him from pulling her against him once he'd parked the car.

"No milkshake?" She asked, looking up at him through her long lashes as she sipped her drink.

"Nah, can't drink that stuff, makes me sick."

"You're lactose intolerant?"

"Yeah, guess so. Still eat ice cream though, even if I regret it later."

"Y'know, lactose intolerance allowed the Mongols to beat the Chinese." She said. "The Chinese had to haul around all this rice while the Mongols could survive off their cows."

"So, you're telling me not to invade China with all my lactose intolerant buddies?"

"Exactly."

Curly chuckled as he pulled his arm back so that he open the cardboard box, the sweet smell of the burger filling the car. Picking it up, he was about to take a bite when he noticed Peggy eagerly eyeing off his fries.

"Thought you weren't hungry?"

"I'm not, but those fries just look so good."

Curly playfully rolled his eyes at her. "You're lucky you're hot."

While he finished his burger Peggy picked at his fries. If she were anyone else he would've told her to fuck off and buy her own, but she wasn't just anyone anymore, hadn't been for quite a while. Besides, she was careful not to eat all of them.

Things were different from last night. He still wanted to tear her clothes off - there probably wasn't going to be a moment when he didn't want that - but he was okay with the idea of just sitting there with her. He didn't need anything else from her.

And now he knew, for certain, that she was feeling everything that he was, whatever it was that he was feeling. After all of her denial, she'd given him everything he'd been wanting, easily admitted her feelings, and he almost felt bad that he couldn't tell her exactly how he felt. But hell, she already knew.

Once they'd finished eating, Peggy moved the empty cardboard box to the spot next to her, stretching her legs out onto his lap. Taking the hint, he pushed up her skirt to settle his hand on her knee, softly rubbing circles into her skin.

"So," she announced, cocking her head at him. "Guess this means that I'm your girlfriend now, huh?"

"Guess you are." He replied, trying to appear casual even though he was anything but flippant about this.

"Hm," she murmured, slipping her fingers through his. "I think I like the sound of that."

"You do, huh?"

"Yeah, I like the idea of being your girlfriend, even if I'm one in a long list." Peggy said, running her thumb over the back of his hand. "You don't have to doubt me, I'm all in with us, no regrets."

After everything that had been said and done, this was the one thing he'd been wanting the most, it was exactly what he needed to hear from her. He'd always walked through life with carelessness, like nothing ever mattered, like nothing ever scared him. But this girl - this stubborn, overly competitive, passionate, brilliant girl - put the fear of god in him, all because she mattered so fucking much.

"You all in too?" She asked, a hint of uncertainty in her voice that he found completely pointless.

"Of course I am."

"Good." She replied, leaning her head down against his shoulder, her body fitting perfectly into his side, like this was meant to be or something. But that was too sappy, so he kept it to himself.

"It ain't that long of a list." Curly corrected. "I mean, I've dated around, but I've never really had a proper girlfriend before."

"Never gone steady with anyone?" She asked, and he shook his head. "Guess we're both inexperienced then."

"You're a pretty good kisser for someone who's inexperienced." He noted. "Michael couldn't 'ave been that good of a teacher."

"Michael wasn't my first kiss."

Curly frowned. "Who was?"

"Billy Taylor." She replied. "Him and Rose used to be on-and-off, it was during one of their off periods. Then there was Tommy Wilson."

"And who's that?" He asked. The name didn't sound familiar and he couldn't think of anyone at school it could be.

"We went to summer camp together last year, we were, not really together, but we kissed a lot and I had the biggest crush on him. He was supposed to write when he got home but he never did."

"Should I find him and beat him up?"

Peggy smiled, leaning up to press a chaste kiss to his lips. "My champion."

"I'm always gonna have your back." He told her, pushing a strand of her hair behind her ear.

She gave him a funny look that he couldn't quite figure out, but he guessed it was good when she slid on to his lap. Burrowing her head in the crook of his neck, he responded by wrapping his arms around her. Despite the fact their bodies were pressed together, there was nothing sexual about their position, but something deeper instead. He wasn't sure what, but it felt different than anything he'd felt with anyone else.

They stayed like that for awhile, kissing and talking and kissing some more, wrapped in each others arms like they were the only two people in the whole goddam world, like they were the only ones that mattered. And to him, they were. Nothing else mattered in this moment but her.

Eventually she pulled away. "You should probably take me home for real now."

"Probably." He admitted, reaching up to run his fingers through her hair.

"My parents know what time the dance finished, they're probably wondering where I am." She explained. "I won't exactly get to spend much time with you if I get grounded for breaking curfew."

"Fine." He begrudgingly acquiesced, and she slipped off of his lap so that he could start the car.

Peggy spent the drive cuddled into his side, humming along to the radio, bopping her head to the beat. It was adorable, in a very embarrassing way but with her it was endearing. He momentarily considered getting lost to draw out the moment, but she wouldn't fall for it.

Reluctantly, Curly pulled up in front of her house, but she didn't make any move to leave. He smiled to himself slightly, but that smile died when she turned to him with questioning eyes.

"Are you gonna be good to me, Curly Shepard?"

It was the one thing he hadn't thought about. He knew he wanted her, wanted to be with her in whatever way she wanted to be with him, but what would their relationship look like? He didn't know how to love right, no one had ever taught him. And she was so fucking good, too good for him. Hurting her was the one thing he wasn't sure he could live with.

"I'm gonna try." He finally admitted. "That good enough?"

Peggy smiled brightly, like that was exactly what she'd wanted him to say. "Yeah, it is."

Reaching into her purse Peggy pulled out a pen, grabbing his hand and scrawling a number down on it. "So you don't have to throw rocks at my window when you want to talk."

"Good, cause that hurt my arm." He teased, pulling her into a quick kiss.

"Glad to see I'm worth the trouble." She laughed, sliding across the seat to open the door. "I'll see you later."

"Yeah, see you later." He replied, watching her step out of the car. It was only when she was halfway up the driveway that he frantically wound down the window, half leaning out of it.

"Hey, Peggy," he called out, and she turned back to give him a surprised look. "I'll pick you up tomorrow at seven."

"Sure thing." She called back, before adding for good measure. "Boyfriend."

Curly couldn't stop himself from grinning like a lovesick fool the whole damn ride home.


End file.
